El Paso ISD Memorial Day Graduations: Disrespectful?

The El Paso Independent School District will be graduating its 2019 senior class beginning on the last weekend of May, and that includes 3 ceremonies scheduled on Memorial Day.

That upset a listener of ours who feels it's disrespectful of the district to do so on a holiday like Memorial Day.

"Memorial Day is to remember the men and women who have lost their lives serving our country," the person who wished to remain anonymous wrote to Mike & Tricia Mornings. "You would think having schools that serve Ft. Bliss they would be more sensitive to things like this. Am I the only one who finds this so disrespectful?"

I reached out to the school district to find out why Thursday, May 23, or Sunday, May 26, weren't chosen instead.

Melissa Martinez, Chief Communications Officer for the district, replied via email that all alternatives were considered.

We are tied to the availability of the Haskins Center. Thursday nor Sunday were options. We also took into consideration that the long weekend would allow families with out-of-town relatives the ability to attend. We did announce the schedule at the start of the school year in order to provide advanced notice.

"We are very proud of our military heroes and of the partnerships we have with Fort Bliss," she added. "All of our schools take great care in acknowledging our service members during their ceremonies."

Disrespectful, Yes or No?

Is it disrespectful for the school district to schedule a school function on not just a school holiday, but a federal holiday set aside to memorialize and honor those who died serving America?

Tricia of Mike and Tricia Mornings thinks so. "If graduation had been scheduled on some other holiday, like say Thanksgiving, people would be up in arms. Think about it, we already see stores not opening on Thanksgiving night to give people the chance to be with their families. Why would the school district not do the same thing on a day of remembrance like Memorial Day?"

In this writer's humble opinion, Memorial Day, like so many other holidays and observances, has sadly lost its meaning and become nothing more than a day off to most. Many of us will attend a gathering of some kind or some event that day. A graduation ceremony is just that in these times; another event.

We took the debate on-air and online and had KISS listeners chime in, the majority of which weren't too bothered.

No matter which side of the argument you fall on or what you plan to do on Memorial Day, consider taking a moment out of your day to honor the men and women who died while serving our country.

Officially, you are asked to do so with a minute of silence at 3 p.m. on Monday, but whatever works for you. Just try to acknowledge in some way those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. They are the reason we have the freedoms we do today.