Editing a Valedictorian

The aftermath of Erin Larson's valedictorian speech at the University of Winnipeg on Sunday has raised many questions.

Was she wrong in her decision to criticize Vic Toews during her speech?

Is it OK for students to voice their controversial opinions in a speech of such magnitude?

One of the questions that came to my mind is "Who viewed/edited this speech before it was read to the public?"

Did anybody?

Back in June 2009, I was named valedictorian of my 2009 Windsor Park Collegiate graduating class. I was given the task of writing an 8-10 minute speech that concluded the convocation ceremony.

I wrote the speech with help from my english teacher. And as it turned out, he was the only one that ended up viewing/editing it before I spoke in front of the crowd at convocation.

Honestly, at the time I was little surprised. I thought the speech would have to get the approval of many different staff members including teachers and principals.

But that wasn't the case. One teacher read it. And on to the stage I went. I could have talked about anything I wanted. But being the good boy I am, I stuck to the basics of a valedictorian speech.

Now Larson gave a warning prior to the convocation in an interview, saying that she was going to talk about Toews in her speech. But nobody attempted to stop her.

After Sunday's controversy, will valedictorian speeches be more heavily edited in the future? And should they be?