The Waco Tribune-Herald reports:
[A] Nov. 13 letter from La Vega Independent School District stated [DaMarcus Blackwell's] son, who was 4 years old at the time, was involved in “inappropriate physical behavior interpreted as sexual contact and/or sexual harassment” after the boy hugged a teacher’s aide and “rubbed his face in the chest of (the) female employee” on Nov. 10.
The letter also stated Blackwell’s son, who Blackwell requested not be named in this story for privacy reasons, spent the day in in-school suspension (ISS) as punishment for the incident.
Blackwell has since filed a complaint with the district.
In turn, the district changed the offense to “inappropriate physical contact” and removed references of sexual contact or sexual harassment from the boy’s file, according to a subsequent letter from the district.
Still, Blackwell said the change isn’t enough....
Uh, our sexual harassment law is based on employment discrimination. It has no applicability to the actions of children in the least.
Yes, I happen to think that people can generally control their biological imperatives enough to avoid grabbing people's asses around the office. That has little to do with the absurdity of accusing a 4-year old of sexual harassment.
I recall as a grade schooler hearing the nuns speak of St. Maria Goretti (sp?) who had had a wealthy landowner's son attempt a "sin of impurity" against her and, upon her resisting, killed her.
We all thought that was a gross over-reaction to a girl's refusal to listen to a fart joke. Literally, that was our idea of what must have happened.
Zero tolerance for drugs, sexual displays, and hate speech lets the principal suspend everyone under the cover of the school board's policies while taking credit for being a tough, no-nonsense educator.
I can only hope most principals out there remind the complaining adult they are dealing with four-year-olds before kicking them out of the office. We probably don't hear about them.
Perhaps he was one of those lucky children to have his mother still planning on breast-feeding him until age 9.
And don't forget the zero tolerance for weapons. Kid has a little 1" pocketknife and he might get expelled. I'm not that old at all and when I went to elementary school most boys carried a pocketknife.
Sure. Decisionmaking becomes easy. And there's a diminished threat of lawsuits. If it produces harmful results ... the administrator is not the one harmed.
I first figured that out when I was told of a case where an officer assigned near the border testified that she ALWAYS asked permission to search a car for drugs, with every traffic stop. I thought that unusual and mentioned it to a prosecutor friend. He replied sure -- that way no one can accuse her of discrimination, profiling, etc..
In that case, tho, the next question was -- so if you stopped the judge here, you'd ask to search his car for drugs? Yes. And his honor added "You know what I'd tell you?" "No, your honor." "I'd tell you to go to hell."
1. Fear of lawyers.
2. Fear of courts.
3. Fear of newspapers/TV/etc.
4. Fear of parents.
5. Fear of loss of liability insurance.
These fears grow out of observations of Columbine and other disasters, but lead to predictable overreactions.
In many ways, these "zero tolerance" things are very rational responses to the risks behind such fears. We should feel sorry for these administrators, not contempt.
Says the "Dog"
Are we really to the point where someone can get chareged with sexual harassment for accidently rubbing an woman's breats. If so, I am guilty for doing so, inadvertently, in a crowded elevator the other day. I guess I should immediately be brough up on sexual harassment charges.
I am not that old, but, when I was in school, except for the most egregious conduct, the teacher was right, and I had to live with it. It is a good lesson - one which lawyers should appreciate, as the law is not always concerned with getting it right.
I'm thinking that if that was sexual contact, then the aide is guilty of a lot worse for rubbing her breasts in a minor's face.
(In a not-quite-so-amok situation, a local high school has decided to stop publishing the names of kids who made the honor roll in the town paper, because it causes too much stress.)
Not true. The Supreme Court interpreted Title IX as applying to the actions of children. Davis v. Monroe County Bd. of Educ., 119 S. Ct. 1661 No doubt the administrator perceived he or she had to do behave this way towards the four-year-old in order to avoid personal liability under Title IX, given the existence of actual knowledge of the conduct. Moreover, the teacher was an employee, so employment law applied as well.
Regarding zero tolerance for knives; there was a case in South Carolina where a kid was suspended (and nearly expelled) for bringing a knife to school. As he had braces, he needed it to cut up his banana, and it was a butter knife -- nothing sharp.
Well, let's just track down that boy and give him his "Luckiest Boy in the World" medal!
/more gratuitous south park...
As to the case in point, typical overreaction from a breed unto themselves, our educators[?], whipped this way and that by the ever changing gusts of media whim.
I had braces; I bit into bananas. Heck, I bit into apples, pears, and celery. What gives?
I agree suspension for bringing a dull edged butter knife is excessive. Still, I'm not buying the "he needed it because he had braces claim." Even if he has some problem biting into a soft banana, he can break off bits with his hands. He can use the side of a fork. To avoid the inconvenience of setting off gun detecting metal detectors, he could use a plastic spoon.
One would think that would be a normal part of taking care of 4 year olds. Humans need physical contact and the younger they are the more they need it. If she was doing her job right she would be hugging her students on a regular basis.
I am not some left wing touchy feely type, I am a stiff upper lip right winger, but even I am shocked at this lack of empathy.
If this is anything like a normal occurence, our society is sick, sick, sick!
Minors have been charged with assault. Sexual harassment is a civil matter.
I wouldn't be surprised to find out that the teacher's aide initiated the investigation herself out of fear that someone thought she was doing something "inappropriate" to the child and she'd be investigated with all those well-known life-changing consquences.
Anybody ever wondered what's wrong with a culture incessantly searching for sexuality in children and tirelessly projecting their own pathological hang-ups on them? They're children, for God's sakes. Not little adults.
Yep, let's teach them all about "social distance" from day one to make sure no neurotic adult's sensibilities are ever challenged.
It's ALL for the children!
When my boy was 5, two of my wife's well endowed friends were vigorously tickling him. This involved a fair amount of contact between him and their boobs. After a few minutes of this, one of the women's buttons popped open exposing quite a bit of cleavage and my boy grabbed a handful. There was not a man or woman in the room who thought that this was anything but funny.
As to biufhufanam's statement, I can neither argue nor improve upon it.
"These allegations are all true."
"Nice!"
Many of them don't any more. If the unscientific example of my friends is representative.
Sure, humans need physical contact, but in this oversexualised culture that need is suspended between the ages of about 6 and 18. At least in the wish of adults. Frequently society rigorously enforces this wish with incredible zeal, never mind the consequences.
It has been my observation that Anglo culture (US, GB, Australia in particular) has a tendency toward what I call the "missionary moral absolute". That is the belief that something is so right, everybody must be converted to it.
They push these absolutes with intolerance and all the might of the State. In the process they are quite willing to abandon important tenets without which society actually regresses, instead of advancing. Advancement being defined as the preservation of liberty and justice.
Other cultures, particularly in Europe, but also in Asia are much more open to prudent, although often tortured compromise.
And yes, school administrators have gone crazy out of fear of lawsuits. Some years ago, my daughter was in elementary school. We got to be friends with the parents of one of her classmates. John, the father, was a big guy--about 6'4". John worked security for one of the chain drug stores. The photo developing department asked him to look at some pictures that they were developing--nothing but pictures of little girls playing on the playground at our elementary school--and every picture focused on their rear ends. There wasn't actually anything criminal about this--just a bit creepy--but John made a point of seeing who picked up the pictures.
A few days go by. John is at the school, picking up his daughter. Mr. Creepy is on school grounds, taking pictures. John goes over to him and says, "Who are you? What are you doing here?" Mr. Creepy can't seem to give a clear answer, so John grabs him by the arm, and takes him to the principal's office. John explains to the principal Mr. Creepy's photographs at the photo developer--and that Mr. Creepy is on school grounds, taking pictures of the little girls.
The principal's first reaction is, "John, you didn't force him to come in here, did you?"
Mr. Creepy then claims that he is there taking pictures of the school for a architect that is going to be doing some renovation work there. The renovations were news to the principal--and when asked to identify the architectural firm that hired him, Mr. Creepy can't remember. Nor can he pick them out of the phone book.
The principal tells Mr. Creepy to leave the school grounds--but is far more concerned about John's actions, than Mr. Creepy's actions.
The vulgar but hilarious line in Ghostbusters where they make reference to the EPA's prig's lack of genitals comes to mind.
What you are describing is discretion and judgment. Lawyers don't allow that, because there's an equal protection lawsuit (and some money) hiding behind any individuals' use of discretion or judgment.
1. Small independent school district in TX.
2. School Officials changing the offense to "inappropriate physical contact."
3. School district's efforts to contact the parents failed.
4. Parent can't clarify if a discipline report is in his son's permanent record.
5. The incident makes news in Waco after a month.
A Waco Tribune commenter said it best, "The safest place for a child is at his mother's breast. She wasn't there. Can't a "teacher" figure that out and deal with this in a manner that will respect his curiosity and yet teach a child what is off limits in a way that will help him respect the "differences"? Innocense should not be punished!"
I remember hugging my mother several times as a child. Reaching up as a child is forced to when hugging even a crouching adult, the most natural places for the child to rest its head are the shoulder and chest.
Four-year-olds have only the most basic understand of what is right and what is wrong. To expect someone at this age to understand the nuances of appropriate and inapproriate hugging is reaching too far.
My wife works in a day with 2-3 year old children. She has both witnessed and been the object of 'gropes' by boys who seemed well aware of exactly what they were doing. Whether the intent was sexual or not would be open to debate, but they weren't accidentally making contact. They were purposefully grabbing or touching.
Quite in line with my earlier drift. No wonder anyone would be paranoid getting near a child. Especially when middle-aged and male.
Looking for sex everywhere! Reminds me of Bob Dylan's John Birch Paranoid Blues. Except there it was Commie hunting.
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=News&id=1256474
Did you notice that that guy was the spitting image of Dr. David Kessler, former head of the Food and Drug Administration? Acted like him, too.
You may be joking, but you actually have a good point. The aide should be careful about making such charges because she can face much, much more serious consequences than the four-year old. She's playing with fire.
Children at that age like breasts for the same reason they like pillows - they're comfy. That's all there is to it.