Thread: Complaint alleges abuse of students (Hispanic students)

5/3/08

Complaint alleges abuse of students

A complaint against the Camden Board of Education has been filed on behalf of one of the Hispanic students who allegedly was made to eat on a gym floor for two weeks by a vice principal.
The state Division on Civil Rights released the complaint yesterday.

The complaint alleges that the girl, a 10-year-old in the fifth grade, "was subjected to differential treatment and harassment while a student at Sumner Elementary School."

The complaint goes on to say that Theresa Brown, who is black and was a vice principal at Sumner, punished the girl and her bilingual classmates by making them eat on the floor without lunch trays in front of other students who got to eat at tables. They were punished because of a broken chair and spilled water.

Brown and Rochelle Caldwell, a guidance counselor who is also black, threatened the students with extended punishment if they told their parents about it, the complaint alleges.

The girl's mother, in the complaint, alleges her daughter "was harassed based on her race and ancestry" and suffered "peer harassment . . . by other predominantly black students." The division will investigate to determine if the state's Law Against Discrimination was violated, according to spokesman Lee Moore. Depending on the outcome, fines and sanctions could be ordered.

District spokesman Bart Leff declined to comment on the complaint, citing personnel issues. The state Department of Education also is investigating the matter and the district's handling of it. There have been community protests calling for Brown to be fired.

The children were made to eat on the floor for two weeks starting Feb. 11. In March, after the punishment became known, Brown was transferred to East Camden Middle School with the same rank and $91,122 salary.

The Camden school board, however, decided to suspend and ultimately fire José Rivera, the students' bilingual teacher.

"I got lynched," said Rivera, who alleged that action was taken against him because he advised students to tell their parents.

"The troublemakers to the brightest kids were all saying the same thing. I said, 'Tell your parents,' " Rivera said.

Rivera was reprimanded for failing to tell the principal, according to a district memo dated March 3. "When you willfully chose to not inform the building principal, you failed to protect the physical well-being and safety of the students," the memo states.

Rivera said he did not tell the principal, who has since retired, because he thought he knew about it already.

Asked why Rivera was fired while Brown was transferred at full rank and pay, Leff said both were personnel matters he could not discuss.

Contact staff writer Rita Giordano at 856-779-3841 or rgiordano@phillynews.com.

http://tinyurl.com/5t75x2

punished the girl and her bilingual classmates by making them eat on the floor without lunch trays in front of other students who got to eat at tables. They were punished because of a broken chair and spilled water.

Now if it's like any lunch room I've been to....the kids pick to sit with their friends and in alot of cases it is with people who are their own color....and in this case coincides with what language they speak. They acted up and all got punished. Would she prefer they stand against the wall and eat? Be denied lunch because they didn't behave? Humiliation is part of some disipline....lord knows I had enough times where I had to stand in a corner or hold my ankles or stand and put my nose on a dot on the chalk board for the class. All for JUST talking. (Imagine that? ) Had to wear a wad of gum on my nose all day once too.....no gum chewing in school. Gosh and in front of boys and latino students and everything!!!!! And one was done by a black male teacher....oh the abuse!!!!! (being sarcastic) Act up and you get in trouble....race has nothing to do with it. Or else we better just have race based schools and only teachers and principles in those schools and all employees of the same race working there...because lord knows if they sneeze or look at you funny it has to be "race"........funded by your races tax dollars and no whining about "fairness" anymore. Because this way obviously isn't working anymore....been at it for 50 years and the whole school system has done nothing but go down hill for everyone.

The complaint goes on to say that Theresa Brown, who is black and was a vice principal at Sumner, punished the girl and her bilingual classmates by making them eat on the floor without lunch trays in front of other students who got to eat at tables. They were punished because of a broken chair and spilled water.

What does a broken chair and spilled water have to do with a kids being hispanic? The article makes it seem like no kids are ever given punishment for misbehaviour and I KNOW that's a lie. You act up, you get punished PERIOD. If the kids mother is doing this for money, I hope she's prepared to pay for all legal expenses when she loses! These BS lawsuits WILL stop if this is done.