This tale will make you feel motivated, and I’m sure you’ll be happy with what happens. A girl at school stands up for her rights, refuses to be bullied, and when her mom arrives, she supports her daughter perfectly! Women shouldn’t face such situations, so why let it happen to kids?
I’m a nurse in the Emergency Room, and we can’t carry our phones. They stay in our lockers. One day, a call comes to the hospital reception on a private line for me.
Phone: This is [Teacher] from your daughter’s school, There’s a situation with your daughter. Can you come in?
Me: Is she sick or hurt? Can it wait until I finish work in two hours?
Phone: [Daughter] hit another student. We’ve been trying to reach you for 45 minutes. It’s really a serious matter.
I go to the school and get led to the Principal’s office. I see my daughter, her advisor, a male teacher, the principal, a boy with a bloody nose, a red face, and his parents.
Principal: Mrs. [Your Name], it’s nice of you to FINALLY join us!
Me: Yeah, ER gets busy. I spent the last hour stitching up a seven-year-old beaten by his mom with a metal ladle, then dealt with the police. Sorry for the delay.
After seeing him try not to be embarrassed, he explains what happened. The boy snapped my daughter’s bra, and she punched him in the face—twice. It seemed like they were angrier with my daughter than the boy.
Me: Oh. And you’re asking if I’ll file charges against him for what he did to my daughter and against the school for letting it happen?
They all get nervous when I bring up sexual assault and start talking at the same time.
Teacher: I don’t think it was that serious.
Advisor: Let’s not overreact.
Principal: I think you’re not getting the point.
The boy’s mom begins to cry. I look at my daughter to hear what happened.
Daughter: He kept snapping my bra. I asked him to stop but he didn’t, so I told Mr. [Teacher]. He told me to ignore it. [Boy] did it again and undid my bra so I hit him. Then he stopped.
I turn to the teacher and ask,
Me: You allowed him to do this? Why didn’t you stop him? Come here and let me touch the front of your pants.
Teacher: What?! No!
Me: Does that seem inappropriate to you? Why don’t you go and pull on Mrs. [Advisor]s bra right now. See how fun it is for her. Or on that boys mothers bra. Or mine. You think just because they’re kids it’s fun?
Principal: Mrs. [Your Name], I respect your position, but [Daughter] did physically hit another child.
Me: No. She defended herself against a sexual attack from another pupil. Look at them; he’s nearly 6 feet and 160 pounds. She’s 5 feet and 84 pounds. He’s a foot taller than her and twice as heavy. How many times should she have let him touch her? If the person who was supposed to help and protect her in a classroom couldn’t be bothered, what should she have done? He pulled her bra so hard it came undone.
The boy’s mom is still crying, and his dad seems both angry and embarrassed. The teacher avoids eye contact with me. I turn my gaze to the principal.
Me: I’m taking her home. I think the boy has learned his lesson. I hope nothing like this happens again, not just to [Daughter], but to any girl here. You wouldn’t let him do it to a staff member, so why allow it to a 15-year-old girl is beyond me. I’ll report this to the school administrators. And if you, turning to the boy, ever touch my daughter again, I will have you arrested for sexual assault Do you understand me?
I was really mad, so I packed up my daughter’s stuff and left. I told the School Board, some of whom I know, and they promised to handle it seriously.
My daughter got moved to a different class for that subject, away from the teacher and the boy.