PUPS DISCUSS CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES
I DON'T OWN PAW PATROL ONLY MY OCS
It was Monday morning. School had just started & 1ST period classes had just begun. In Homeroom Miss Spearwood addressed the kids about the topic of work they would be doing.
"OK class this week in Homeroom we'll be taking a look at controversial topics. The topics we're taking a look at are all things that cause different feelings & opinions. There will be 1 topic we'll be focusing on each day. Today we'll be focusing on animal rights. I've drawn a chart on the board & this chart has 2 sections. 1 section is for reasons that people should support animal rights & the other is for reasons that people should oppose them. I want each of you to think of 1 reason for support & 1 reason for opposition. This exercise will be done with every topic. I'll give you a few minutes to think about what reasons you want to put up" said Miss Spearwood.
Everyone in class sat quietly at their desks thinking about their reasons. Elias found this whole assignment to be quite interesting.
"This has to be 1 of the most interesting & thought provoking assignments I've ever done for school. I wonder what other topics we'll be discussing" thought Elias.
After a few minutes had passed each of the students took in turns to write their reasons for support & opposition. Elias' reason for support was that animals were living beings & had feelings & thoughts similar to humans & his reason for opposition was that killing animals provided a source of food, clothing & other things humans might need or want to live with. After everyone had finished writing their reasons Miss Spearwood addressed the class.
"OK everyone we're going to have a discussion about animal rights. Would anyone like to start?" asked Miss Spearwood.
Katie raised her hand. Everyone looked on as she began to speak.
"I'm going to be completely honest & say that animal rights are essentially human rights for other living beings. Since they have feelings & thoughts like us that means that killing them is kind of like murder in a way. I would never willingly kill another animal regardless of the situation. It's just not who I am. If I was forced to kill Cali that would make me sick. I don't even want to think about that. I remember when Nikita 1ST arrived in town. Denise & Richard abused her rights & didn't give her the care & love she deserves. I think that killing animals in general is wrong" said Katie.
Elias raised his hand & asked to respond. Miss Spearwood obliged.
"I'm not trying to make things hard but there have been times in the past where you have eaten meat Katie. Meat comes from animals so therefore they had to have been killed in order for us to eat their meat. I'm not saying that you're doing anything wrong but people might think that your point of view could be somewhat hypocritical. I don't think you are a hypocrite but I just think by saying this I can get everyone to understand why that point of view may come across that way. I agree with you about treating animals right. When I found out about Nikita's abuse I was disgusted. Animals should be treated just as well as we treat each other. I don't mind if they have to be killed for clothes & food but if & when they are being killed for those things I hope that they don't suffer. My point of view might be somewhat hypocritical itself but that's not how I'm trying to present my opinion. It's hard to understand these things sometimes but unfortunately I just don't think that people will stop killing animals for clothes & food. I know not all of you will agree but that's how I see things. Katie I just want you to know that I respect your opinion & if you're offended by what I'm saying I'm truly sorry. You're 1 of the best friends I've ever had & I don't want this topic to ruin things between us. That's all I have to say right now" said Elias.
Everyone in the room was quiet. Even though nothing was said everyone was able to understand where both Elias & Katie were coming from. It was a good thing that things didn't get heated. Throughout the rest of the period everyone discussed their opinions on animal rights. As the day went on Elias couldn't stop thinking about how tense the 1ST class was. It stayed on his mind throughout 2ND period & into recess.
"I can tell that things could possibly get tense throughout this week. All I hope for is that me & the others don't ruin our friendship because of these issues. That would be awful. I know that everyone has different opinions & I can respect that but it doesn't mean I agree with them. I really hope nothing goes wrong" thought Elias as he played on the swing set. Throughout the next 2 periods the thoughts of the controversial topics remained on Elias' mind. At lunch he told the others how he was feeling.
"This week's assignment in Homeroom is going to be quite interesting but tense at the same time. I don't know what other topics we'll be learning about but the only thing I wish for is that we all stay friends through this. I know that we won't all agree on the same things regarding these topics & I can respect your opinions but that shouldn't mean that we should drift apart because of our different points of view. I love you guys & I wouldn't want us to stop being friends over this assignment" said Elias.
"I agree with that. I promise not to let that happen to us" said Ace.
"Me too. Everyone is different & everyone feels differently about different things. That's what makes us who we are" said Carlos.
"That's the thing I like about you guys. Each of us has our own beliefs. It would be pretty boring if every human being had the same viewpoint. Let's not have this assignment ruin our friendship" said Danny.
"I can tell that this assignment will push us to our psychological limits. I can't guarantee that things will remain peaceful in class but we can try to keep it that way" said Katie.
"I think that's what the most important part of this assignment is. We mustn't let things spiral out of control because of the things we believe in" said Kelly.
"I think that we can make it through this. I know it's not going to be easy but as long as we don't let things get too crazy then we should all be alright" said Ryder.
Everyone shared a group hug. It felt good to know that they were all going to try not to let their friendship die over an assignment. After school Angel, Elias & Kelly went to the Lookout. They went with Ryder & the pups to the beach where they were joined by Nikita & the Turbots. They all discussed the assignment given to them in school.
"This week in school we're learning about controversial topics. Today we learned about animal rights. The discussion we had was quite interesting" said Angel.
"That sounds quite intriguing indeed. Obviously all of us support animal rights" said Chase.
"I think we do for the most part. I think it depends on specific aspects of it as well" said Marshall.
"I support animal rights on just about every viewpoint there is in the topic. Considering my past it's not hard to see why I feel this way" said Nikita.
"It would be weirs if we opposed them. That would just be strange for a pup, kitten or any other animal for that manner to oppose animal rights" said Rocky.
"I agree with that. Opposing animal rights when you are 1 yourself wouldn't make sense" said Rubble.
"I don't know if anyone in town opposes animal rights. There probably are some people but I'd rather not think about that" said Skye.
"The only people I know who seem to oppose animal rights are Chrissy, Denise & Richard. We all saw the things they did & they never felt bad about it" said Zuma.
"It's a good thing that they're never going to mistreat animals again. I don't think any of them will ever be allowed access to animals in the future" said Captain Turbot.
"That's what I'm thinking. They shouldn't be allowed to have pets or even be in the presence of animals after what they did" said Elias.
"Oui I totally agree. It makes me sick to think that people can be so cruel to animals" said Francois.
"I don't know what other topics we'll be learning about but I can tell that it'll be quite a thought provoking experience for all of us" said Kelly.
"That's for sure. I don't know how things will turn out but the last thing anybody wants is schoolyard civil war. That would be catastrophic" said Ryder.
Everyone agreed. After a few more minutes of discussion everyone played volleyball. A few hours later they went their separate ways. While Elias was eating dinner he couldn't stop thinking about the assignment.
"Are you OK Elias?" asked Ella.
"Yes. I'm just thinking about this assignment we have in school. It's focusing on controversial topics in society. Today we focused on animal rights. There were quite a few interesting things people had to say" said Elias.
"That sounds fascinating. I don't think anything like this has ever been taught in schools before. I think it's a brilliant idea to teach kids about stuff like this so they can get a better understanding on these topics" said Ethan.
"That's definitely an interesting way of putting it. I'm fine with the school teaching us stuff like this as long as things don't get out of hand. That could potentially be a problem" said Elias.
Angel, Ella & Ethan agreed. Later on as Elias got ready for bed he thought about what issues would be discussed throughout the week.
"There are so many different topics we could be covering. I wouldn't be surprised if there were enough topics to cover an entire term's worth of Homeroom lessons. I don't know what's in store for the rest of the week but I know that in the end at least we'll be able to understand these issues better by learning about them" thought Elias as he went to sleep.