Highland Park School Officials Apologize After Author Heckled

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HIGHLAND PARK (CBSDFW.COM) - Highland Park school officials are apologizing after a bestselling author was heckled and repeatedly interrupted while speaking to a group of freshman and sophomore students last week.

Jamie Ford, author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet and Songs of Willow Frost was the keynote speaker at a literary event.

Reached by phone today, Ford said "the audience was basically mocking and jeering me."

So while explaining that "words are my weapons," Ford, went to war—posting on his personal website about the unpleasant experience in the wealthy Dallas area enclave.

"For twenty minutes, as I tried to wrap up my presentation, you clapped and cheered randomly, a thousand students, trolling me," wrote Ford.  "Despite the 1000 to 1 odds, I wasn't about to be run off the stage by a bunch [of] entitled children who had decided I was just another mark to be bullied."

And if you're wondering why the adults didn't intervene—so was Ford, writing "I was perplexed as your teachers and your principal—who was just offstage, stood impotent, while you mocked me, a guest to your magnificent school."

Highland Park school officials today did not return calls seeking comment. However, HPISD Board President Joe Taylor and Superintendent Tom Trigg released a statement to parents, alumni and the school community acknowledging the incident and expressing disappointment at the students' behavior.

The statement read, in part, "Dr. Trigg has already spoken with Mr. Ford to offer his sincere apology in private, but we also want to apologize publicly, on behalf of the Highland Park ISD community, for the unacceptable behavior he encountered during his keynote address. We still have much to learn from this incident and are continuing to examine additional appropriate actions to take as the result of what transpired during the presentation."

Ford, who is of Chinese heritage, was speaking about his first novel which is set against the backdrop of the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II.

According to Ford, "there was a moment when I felt like no one was in charge.  As a guest. I didn't think it was my spot to reprimand a 1000 students in an auditorium."  Ford says the event organizers were "mortified" and that he was also immediately contacted by several students embarrassed by the others' behavior.

"Yes, it's embarrassing!" exclaimed freshman Ashley Nelson, "even for the people that weren't doing it."

Nelson attended Ford's assembly.  However, she says she was in the balcony and missed the source of the disruption.  However, she insists that not every student was involved in the heckling, as the author's post suggest.

"I thought some of it was true," says Nelson of Ford's angry post, "some of it was uncalled for.  It was only a group of boys, like 10 or something."

Ford confirmed that school officials had contacted him to apologize and says he has heard from many former and current teachers and students, who are all offering their support.  Still, many in the community are appalled.

"It just says that we're teaching our children to not have any respects for adults and authority and they're allowed to behalf however they want," says Taylor Enger, who works in the area.

Nevertheless, Ford says he "wholeheartedly" accepts the apology the community has offered and hopes that the final word on the ugly incident can be one with a positive outcome. "I'm hoping some good things can come from this."