She knew the Indian students considered drumming and dancing sacred. To share these ceremonial rites meant they felt accepted by their white peers. The hallways at Lee Academy were still and quiet just before lunch on Feb. 11, a bitterly cold Thursday morning. Lee Academy students Victoria Nute and Renee Nicholas look at Laura Currier's senior pictures. White and Indian students traditionally mixed well at the school, but a fight last winter took on racial overtones.
Currier is a member of the school's civil rights team.
Staff photo by John Ewing Students had settled into their classes when some of them heard scuffling. One boy in the library heard a loud bang outside the door. It sounded like thunder. Then he heard two male voices, loud and angry. Teachers rushed to break up the fight.