Gay NY teen's harassment suit gets federal notice

[onehandle]

Source: AP

MOHAWK, N.Y. – The bullying by classmates and taunts of "homo" only got worse after Jacob began dyeing his hair and wearing eyeliner in eighth grade. One student scrawled "I hope you die" on his shoe, he said; another drew a pocket knife on him.

Jacob's grades dropped, and he missed school from fear. His father tried repeatedly to get school officials in their working-class village in upstate New York to help protect his son from harassment. The response by the Mohawk Central School District, according to a federal lawsuit, was to do "virtually nothing."

"Everything was bad," Jacob — who is identified as "J.L." in the lawsuit and didn't want to draw attention to his new school by having his last name used in this story — said this week. "I hyperventilated when I left the school ... and I didn't want to come back the next day, or ever."

The 15-year-old might soon get a measure of satisfaction. The lawsuit filed by Jacob and his father against the school district with the New York Civil Liberties Union could be close to settlement, according to both sides.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100204/ap_on_re_us/us_gay_teen_harassment

[Dappleganger]

1. K&R

[pleah]

2. K&R

[closeupready]

3. Here's to hoping he wins BIG TIME.

K&R

[joeglow3]

4. So our public schools can be even more underfunded?

I agree that the administrators involved should be canned, but I fail to see what taking money from our already underfunded public schools will do.

[closeupready]

5. Punitive damages are supposed to hurt. If that means property taxes have to go up,

then maybe parents will start demanding that administrators take a zero tolerance policy on bullying.

[joeglow3]

6. Yaaah. So we punish the innocent kids.

Sorry you now get a shittier education for doing nothing wrong, but thats life. Oh, and all you property tax owners with no kids (and those with kids who were not aware of this), too fucking bad. Pony up cash you don't have. If you lose your house, well, it is supposed to hurt. Next time, you will spend a few hours a week you don't have roaming the schools to make sure everything is up to snuff.

[closeupready]

7. Yup. I guess. Should have nipped it in the bud.

This is what you get when children for whom you are responsible get psychologically abused, it is brought to your attention, and you do nothing about it.

Now instead of seeing kid pay the price for cruelty, the school district pays him. Karma sucks.

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[closeupready]

9. So wait - this story pisses you off? You think bullies should be permitted?

Or you think that it's unfair that victims of bullying (or their parents) should have a right to sue?

Or cap judgments at $100 or something? What?

[joeglow3]

10. I fully support the victim and firing of those adults involved

I do not support punitive damages. Punitive damages, by their very definition, are above and beyond the financial damages done. I think the schools should compensate them for any medical/mental expenses incurred by the family. However, given that the intention of punitive damages is to punish the wrongdoer and that this party is the school and ALL students would suffer, I cannot support a further financial drain on the public schools resources.

[No Elephants]

13. And maybe even teach their own kids better--or at least teach them to keep their nasty

mouths shut.

[closeupready]

16. Exactly. I am not retreating on my position on this. I would fully support punitive damages

in an amount that helps make him whole again. And they wouldn't be getting off cheap if it were up to me. No fucking way.

[Socal31]

11. Jesus that is bad.

Punish the idiot taunters, dont take money from the school.


PS: The kid that drew the weapon? Hard jail time please.

[No Elephants]

14. How is this kid supposed to punish the "idiot taunters?" He and his parents took the only

recourse legally open to them.

If his lawsuit succeeds, school boards all over the country will finally sit up and pay attention. At least I hope so.

[closeupready]

17. They likely have some kind of insurance to cover judgments.

n/t

[JI7]

12. good for him

[No Elephants]

15. I'm glad this seems to have a happy ending, whether or not he wins this suit. Bless the ACLU.

It does SUCH good work.


"The lawsuit claims the principal and other district officials did not follow their own anti-harassment policies. Teachers blocked him from going to a "safe room" set up for him. One teacher told him he should be ashamed of himself for being gay, according to court papers.

Jacob's father, Robert Sullivan (he has a different last name), devoted himself to making sure his son was safe in school despite fighting Hodgkin's lymphoma.

"I put the cancer stuff aside," Sullivan said, "because he doesn't have anyone to defend himself beside me."

But Sullivan said he failed to make much progress.

"You listen to your child cry at night and wish he was dead, and wish he wasn't here. It's a hard thing to go through," Sullivan said. "And you know you've got to send him back there the next day."