Speak

I don't want to know.

There's chicken pot pie defrosting on the counter.

Dad is not home and I'm going to therapy.

First stop of the day.

Just you and me, kid.

Just... pick a seat...

Any seat.

It's my first day of high school.

I have seven new notebooks, a skirt

I hate and a stomachache.

Hi I'm Heather.

I'm new here.

Are you?

We moved in here Saturday.

-Cool shoes.

-Oh, thanks. I got them at a back to school sale.

I mean, I wanted them in black but

I wear an 8 1/2.

And they were a bit small, so I had

to find 9s. They only had a 9 in pink.

But they look good.

Name.

Name, freshman.

It's for the yearbook.

Melinda Sordino.

The school board decided that Trojans

didn't send a strong message of abstinence.

So now we've become the

Merryweather Hornets.

What are we supposed to cheer? 'We are

the Hornets, the horny horny Hornets!'?

Got a hall pass, young lady?

Come here.

Hustle, young lady!

Seven minutes past grace period.

Name.

Don't make this difficult.

Name!

Melinda Sordino.

-Grade?

-Ninth.

That's one demerit, Sordino.

Get to class.

Biology ... is the study of ...

Is the study of ... good ...

Good

Oh hello, dear. Do you have a late pass?

It is the first day. Just

don't make it a habit of it.

-And your name is?

-Melinda Sordino.

Ok, your lab partner must

be ... uh, let's see ...

Oh, excellent!

And your name is?

Dave Petrakis.

My English teacher has no face.

I call her "Hair Woman".

Grada Walkancros... from Belgium.

We're so pleased to

have you here in America.

She doesn't speak English.

-Heather Billings.

-Here.

Rachel Bruin.

-Rochelle.

Ah, Rochelle. Rochelle.

Rachel Bruin.

My ex-best friend.

Oh, and class? Please tell me if I

pronounce your surname wrong or

if you have a preferred nickname.

Hello? Hold the line, we'll

try to find your location.

-Rachel, wait ...

-Are you nuts?

Where's Melinda?

I don't care!

Hi everybody.

Uh, welcome to Art.

The only class that will

teach you how to survive.

This is where you

can find your soul.

If you dare.

Don't ask me to show you

how to draw a face.

Ask me to help

you find the wind.

Good! Right, that's good! Can

you tell me what you're feeling?

Right now.

Ok, can anybody tell me what

they're actually feeling right now?

Does Algebra move you to tears?

Are numbers and words more

important than images?

Can anybody tell me what this is?

A-globe?

A-globe.

What are you guys 13, 14? You've

already let them beat the creativity out of you?

It's ok.

I used to let my daughters kick this around

my studio when it was too wet to play outside.

And one day, Jennie

put her foot right through Texas and

the entire United States,

crumbled into the sea. See?

I mean, you could, you could, ahem,

paint a wet muzzled dog chewing Alaska, right?

I mean, the possibilities are endless.

It's almost too much, but uh, you

all are important enough to give it to. So.

Alright, so um, here you go.

In here is a piece of paper.

Great. And on that piece of paper

is a word.

You're gonna spend the rest of the year

turning that object into art.

-Mr Freeman.

-Mm-hmm?

When I was little, I was really scared of clowns and I

don't want to relapse and have to go back into therapy.

Oh, yeah well fear is a

great place to begin art.

Hey! Whoa! You just chose your

destiny. You can't change that.

I learned how to draw a tree

in like the second grade.

Oh, really?

Well, you gonna show me?

It's ok, I won't grade you.

No commentary, please.

That's a pretty good start.

Let's see what it looks like at

the end of the year, huh?

It's Melinda Sordino.

Called the cops. You know,

and busted everyone...

You know, my buddy? You

know Jeff, his brother?

See you tomorrow!

Are you sick?

How was your first day?

-Fine.

-Look what I got at the store.

You don't like it, we can

always get store credit.

Where's the sweater?

I thought you said it was returnable.

No, I got it on sale.

Don't wear it, don't wear it. It's fine.

Well then why'd you say that it...

All that crap you hear on tv about

communication and expressing feelings

is a lie.

No one really cares

what you have to say.

So here's the plan. We join

But not like Latin club. Cool stuff.

What do you want to join? Hey, maybe we

can tutor kids at the elementary school.

What about your friends from

last year? Don't you know Nicole?

I wonder how long it

would take for anyone to notice

if I just stopped talking.

I was into bowling

back in La Joya. That was fun.

But the bowling club here does seem

like it really attracts the right people.

Hanging back is a very common mistake most ninth

graders make. I mean you shouldn't be intimidated.

Wait, are you getting

darker than me? Hold on.

-Oh man. You need a mouthguard.

-Gym should be illegal.

It's humiliating.

Hey, do you know the Martha clan? They do all these

cool projects like feeding the homeless and stuff.

Oh and they dress in different color schemes depending

on the season. I mean, I'm not good in fall tones.

And I said I can wear beige

instead of orange, but you know.

Oh no, Sordino.

Front row.

I got my eye on you.

We're studying American history

for the ninth time in nine years.

Every year they say we're going

to get right up to the present

but we always get stuck in the

industrial revolution.

My family ...

has been in this country ...

for over 200 years.

We built this place.

We fought in every war.

From the first one to the last one.

We paid our taxes.

They voted.

So, tell me why my

son can't get a job.

Reverse discrimination.

He wanted to be a firefighter.

Went up for the job

but he didn't get it.

What I'm suggesting here is maybe if we

had closed our borders

in 1900, then real Americans

would get the jobs they deserve.

Young lady.

Um, I think that we're all foreigners, and should

just give the country back to the Native Americans.

Now we have a debate, don't we?

Native Americans.

Maybe your son didn't get the

job because he wasn't good enough.

-Or maybe he's lazy... or maybe the guy was just better...

-Watch your mouth, mister.

That's my son you're talking about.

You know what? That's enough debate.

Everybody take out your book.

Mr. Petrakis, please take your seat.

If the class is debating, than any student

has a right to say what's on his mind.

I decide who talks

in here, Mr. Petrakis.

You opened a debate. You can't close it just

because it's not going your way.

-Watch me! Take your seat, Mr. Petrakis.

-The constitution does not recognize different

levels of citizenship based

upon the time spent in the country.

As a citizen and a student, I'm

protesting the tone of this lesson

as racist,

intolerant, and xenophobic.

Sit your butt in that chair,

Mr. Petrakis. And watch your mouth.

I tried to get this debate going and, uh, you

people turn it into a race thing.

Sit down, Mr. Petrakis, or

you're gonna go down to the principal's office.

Dave Petrakis is my new hero.

Hey, Rach.

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