Yemeni Student "Hazed" - Told To "Dance Like Osama Bin Laden"

[matcom]

i'd like to beat every one of their PARENTS asses :puke:

<snip>

MELVINDALE -- A 16-year-old former football player who said he was subjected to a brutal hazing at Melvindale High School has filed a federal lawsuit against the school district, three coaches and three teammates.

In August 2003, the Yemeni immigrant told police he was sexually assaulted by a teammate while three other teammates held him down in the school locker room.

Following a yearlong review and investigation, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office charged three students with misdemeanor assault and battery on Nov. 4, 2004. All pleaded no contest to the charge, Michigan State Police records show, and were placed on probation.

The lead defendant, Ibrahim Attallah, served three days in jail, said Samer Jadallah, a lawyer for the family who filed suit. Attallah admitted in an interview with State Police that he slapped the victim on the buttocks but adamantly denied he had sexually assaulted him.

Attallah's mother, Denise Attallah, declined to comment Friday and referred questions to her son's lawyer, Tim Attalla, who didn't comment. Melvindale school officials didn't return phone calls. The school board referred calls to the school's attorney, Kevin J. Foley, who didn't return calls seeking comment.

The civil rights-based lawsuit filed last week in U.S. District Court in Detroit accuses the school district of failing to adequately investigate the matter and failing to discipline Melvindale High School coaches or students.

It's not uncommon for high school or college sports teams to subject new players to hazing. But Samer Jadallah, attorney for the 5-foot-4, 120-pound victim said the assault "shattered the kid's entire dream."

"He wanted to fit in, to play football," Jadallah said. "That was his passion.

"Four 200-pound players held him down and assaulted him. That's a beating, not hazing."

The teen's parents came from Yemen about a decade ago to live the American dream, Jadallah said. The victim is attending another western Wayne County high school, where he is on the honor roll, despite suffering from depression.

The teenager said that because of his heritage, teammates subjected him to a torrent of abuse during an eight-day summer conditioning program for the football team. He also said he was repeatedly called by ethnic slurs -- and said he was the only one of 20 freshman players who was ordered to pick up garbage spit out by older players.

Another student told the teenager to get him "some Kool-Aid and Twix bars" because "it shouldn't be a problem because you Arabs own all the gas stations," according to the 34-page Michigan State Police report written by Detective Sgt. David Meyer and obtained by The News.

The same day, another student told him to "get in his boxer shorts and dance like (Osama) Bin Laden in circles," Meyer's report said.

http://www.detnews.com/2005/metro/0505/09/B01-175543.htm

[sniffa]

1. LoveLy

yet, this is pretty much par for the course, or at Least it was 10 years ago. one thing i remember about high schooL sports - the Latent homoeroticness in the hazing rituaLs.

but hey, it's aLL about bonding homophobes.

[CottonBear]

2. Unfuckingbelievable. One of the coaches is a cop.

I am speechless. What awful children with awful, hateful parents.

http://www.detnews.com/2005/metro/0505/09/B01-175543.htm

Because one of the coaches, Ellis Slaughter, is a Melvindale police officer, the department referred the case to the Michigan State Police for investigation.

<snip>

The report shows that many players saw the incident in the locker room and some regretted not stopping it.

<snip>

Gallmayer told police that Attallah told 10 players "(the victim) needs an attitude adjustment." Gallmayer admitted to grabbing the victim by the arm and said Attallah hit the victim on the buttocks.

The third student who pleaded no contest, Kevin Kurant, said "he grabbed (the victim) from behind, around his chest and stomach, and lifted him toward the bathroom."