USAToday.com
Watertown - A former hockey player at Watertown High School who had filed a harassment lawsuit accusing teammates of hazing him and using homosexual slurs has settled the case. Jonathan Jablonowski is to receive $30,000 from the school board. While he was a member of the team from 2001 to 2004, he said he was subjected to locker room harassment including mooning, foul speech and swearing.
A case in Fayetteville, Arkansas could prove very interesting as a family has sued a high school bully and may soon sue the school district over a prolonged and dangerous pattern of bullying directed against 15-year-old Billy Wolfe.
On the video, one of the boys announces that he is going to beat up Billy Wolfe and in front of his younger sister he walks up and suddenly punches him. For the video, click here
When his Mom called the boy’s parents, the boy showed Billy a list of 20 names the next day of boys who signed up to beat him.
The bullying then extended to the Internet. In a situation disturbingly like the Megan Meier case, here, Billy was made the subject of a vile Facebook page called “Every One That Hates Billy Wolfe.” The bullies put a picture of Billy’s face over an image of Peter Pan and wrote: “There is no reason anyone should like billy he’s a little bitch. And a homosexual that NO ONE LIKES.”
This is not the first lawsuit involving Fayetteville and bullying. The district was previously sued after a student was savagely beaten for being gay.
Such lawsuit may force educators to act with the threat of financial penalties. I have been a critic of one response, however: taking the victims out of the school and leaving the bullies, click here.
What particularly worries me is that the boys described in Wolfe’s lawsuit will become citizens and parents without any corrective action. They have been taught, by omission, that their conduct is popular and natural. This only serves to replicate homophobic, intolerant, and violent values in society. High school is a powerful learning ground and this is one lesson that we need to stop.
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