Dad protects daughter bullied on School Bus

[Bonny]

On the Today show there was an issue, an African American girl was bullied on the school bus so her dad came to her rescue. The school bus had a camera on it so the whole thing was recorded. Now he is being charged for it. The girl was really sweet & you could see it really hurt her deep inside. I remember all the bullying that went on when we rode school buses. Times sure haven't changed. The kids on the bus were not only mentally abusing her but physically, hitting her on the back of the head. :eek::(:mad:

[moosmom]

I was bullied as a kid. Those memories just don't go away. I commend the father for coming to his daughter's aid.

I also blame the bus driver for not stepping in. Bullying is so hurtful and to this day, I still remember those awful days when I had to run home from school or wait till my brother came and walked me home. I also remember the names of those bullies.

I'm glad that bullying is now being looked at very seriously. I only wish they had done that when I was a kid.

[Asiel]

Laughing and making fun of someone at their expense is also a form of bullying, something certain people fail to recognize.

Bullies are people with very low or no self esteem. I hope this father will be commended for his actions and not intimidated. Bullying should be stopped the minute it surfaces .

[sparks19]

can't say I blame the father. Schools don't do jack about bullying so parents are being put into this position to defend our own and then we suffer the consequences.

Schools need to take this more seriously. it happens under their supervision and they turn a blind eye all too often.

I say a Zero tolerance policy or a three strikes and you're out policy. First detention, then sent home, then expelled. No one else's education should suffer because of a bunch of pathetic bullies.

[Taz_Zoee]

I heard this report on the radio and they said the girl had cerebral palsy. Which makes it even worse, not that bullying in general is not bad. Look at the other young kids that have actually taken their own lives due to being bullied.
I also do not blame the father. However, screaming profanities at the kids may have been a little much. But I can understand his anger.

[Medusa]

I completely understand this father's anger and frustration. I was bullied as a kid and so was my son. (When he was young, he was a peanut in size but in high school that all changed. He definitely bulked up.) I went to the school and was told there was nothing they could do. So I went directly to the parents. One woman said that she'd handle it and she did. Another woman told me "Hey, as far as I'm concerned it's open season. I can't be bothered w/this." Of course, this is the same woman who was screaming one night "Help me, please, oh god, someone help me!" My husband and I ran down to her house and her husband had her on the ground and was punching her. My husband yelled "Hey!" to startle the guy and he jumped off his wife, who then yelled at my husband "Mind your own Godd*** business!" So it's easy to see why the kids bullied others. If I were a parent today, I would still go through the proper channels to avoid legal action but if that didn't work to my satisfaction, I'd handle it myself. I was really a mama bear and I still am. I will not stand idly by and watch others be bullied either physically or verbally.

[momcat]

I saw the interview this morning on the Today Show. What a cute little girl! It broke my heart when she started crying while talking about the abuse she had to endure.

You go, Dad! I don't blame him at all and respect him for defending his daughter. If this has been an ongoing problem with this bus, why didn't the driver do something to help her? Put the bullies off the bus, tell the school administration about the abuse, say something to someone so it would stop.

I'm hoping that all charges against the Dad are dismissed, he did what he had to do. It's the bullies that should be facing charges; make an example out of them then kick them out of school. Then make it very clear to the parents of these out of control tormentors that their "Kids will be kids" attitude will not be tolerated. Some serious family counseling should be ordered by the court at the very least.

[Bonny]

Laughing and making fun of someone at their expense is also a form of bullying, something certain people fail to recognize.

Bullies are people with very low or no self esteem. I hope this father will be commended for his actions and not intimidated. Bullying should be stopped the minute it surfaces .

Who are the certain people are you referring to in the above sentence? I grew up with name calling as a kid & it was recognized as wrong & pointing fingers at others was not considered any better. :(

[Bonny]

I heard this report on the radio and they said the girl had cerebral palsy. Which makes it even worse, not that bullying in general is not bad. Look at the other young kids that have actually taken their own lives due to being bullied.
I also do not blame the father. However, screaming profanities at the kids may have been a little much. But I can understand his anger.

Our younger son has mild cerebral palsy. He had a kid on the bus call him a worthless cripple. My older son proceeded to beat the crap out of that kid. I got a call from the school & they didn't like what I had to say about them & their policy. That kid never opened his crappy bully mouth to either of our sons & left the other kids alone on the bus too. Sometimes you have to take the law into your own hands if you can't get people's attention.

[Asiel]

Who are the certain people are you referring to in the above sentence? I grew up with name calling as a kid & it was recognized as wrong & pointing fingers at others was not considered any better. :(


I reread my post twice to make sure I was seeing it right. I don't see any names and I don't see anything that resembles finger pointing. It seems you took it personally for some reason. I was applying a general comparison to something I witnessed. Was the wording politically incorrect? I didn't bother with this seeing we're on a pet forum .

[Bonny]

I reread my post twice to make sure I was seeing it right. I don't see any names and I don't see anything that resembles finger pointing. It seems you took it personally for some reason. I was applying a general comparison to something I witnessed. Was the wording politically incorrect? I didn't bother with this seeing we're on a pet forum .

You said certain people I am going what certain people, certain people on here? :confused: What did you witness? I am always getting it from the spellling patrol on here but don't mind. :D

[Marigold2]

The father has the right to protect the child. The school, the bus driver were not so what could he do. I would have done the same, I think most of us would have. I think the man is a good father who wanted to protect his kid.

[wombat2u2004]

I was bullied as a kid. Those memories just don't go away.

Oh, do you still remember the times I used to pull your pigtails ??? :p

[moosmom]

No, but I do remember you dipping my pigtail in the ink well!!:p;)

[DJFyrewolf36]

Bullying sucks and it is a sad part of human nature. I don't blame the dad one bit for defending his child. I do blame parents who defend their brat, bully children however.
When I was younger, I had to take matters into my own hands. I got into trouble but no one ever bullied me again. :p:D I dislike violence, and to this day it bothers me that I had to fight fire with fire.

[K9karen]

I was bullied in Jr High by one boy in my 9th grade class. After constantly asking him as nicely as possible to stop, I took matters into my own hands. After a vicious verbal attack during lunch hour, I stood up, met him eye to eye and smacked him so hard, he fell over. The surprising thing is that all the other boys in the class, grabbed him and held him and urged me to do it again. I didn't, but the bullying stopped. And I earned a lot of respect, that I can say.

[kokopup]

Usually Bullying is a learned process. Most Bully's are acting out what they see or get at home. It is usually fruitless to confront the parent because they are the teachers of the behavior the kids are acting out. Unless the bullied child or one of his peers confront the problem it will continue on into adulthood. If the mother of the child is being bullied by the father she may take action to correct the child , but often the bullying father will intervene for the bullying child, and the mother is powerless to correct the problem. In some cases it is the mother that is the teacher of bad behavior.

[lizbud]

I was bullied in Jr High by one boy in my 9th grade class. After constantly asking him as nicely as possible to stop, I took matters into my own hands. After a vicious verbal attack during lunch hour, I stood up, met him eye to eye and smacked him so hard, he fell over. The surprising thing is that all the other boys in the class, grabbed him and held him and urged me to do it again. I didn't, but the bullying stopped. And I earned a lot of respect, that I can say.


Way to go Karen.:)

[Cataholic]

I had some limited experience with this this year, on J's very first bus ride. In fact, the first two weeks had some left over issues. What part of "kindergartners sit in the first 3 seats" doesn't a person in charge of driving a bus full of kids not understand? J went to the back of the bus!!! I was shocked, and had an immediate visceral reaction. I was on the phone with the vice principal (the handler of discipline) and the teacher, by the time we had completed our walk home from the bus stop. I wanted to get on the bus and tell the girl a thing or two myself. :o

THEN, the driver got PO'd with me, since I complained. J got off the bus one day and was crying. Driver said she didn't know why....she had to keep moving him cause he was hitting this kid, but she wasn't mean about it. Huh? Thank GOD for the other little girl at the bus stop. She said, "that boy was hitting J, and every time J moved, so did this boy. J only hit him that time to make him stop". I nearly hit the bus driver. She said, "oh, well I neve saw that part of it". Really. So, I called again. She can hate me all she wants, as long as she does her job.

I have told J similarly to what K9Karen says, though I haven't really focused n the "constantly asking him..." part. I have told him one or two times, tell an adult if nearby, then he is free to hit. I have received a comment or two from a family member about this...but my thought is if you don't want your child hit by mine, make sure yours doesn't hit first. :eek:

I can completely empathize with this father. Our situation doesn't even rate, and I was upset.

I agree with Kokopup, to an extent. I think bullying is a learned behavior at times. But, I think also it is just a personality trait (stemming from lack of self esteem/confidence). So, while the child might not be bullied at home, he/she is acting out from not having needs met at home.

And, as Kokopup said, sometimes the parent isn't receptive to the message that their child is a bully. I also think some people have different ideas as to what constitutes bullying vs. 'normal' behaviour. I don't think name calling is 'normal' behaviour. Some people think it is kids being kids.

[Marigold2]

Much of this is a society problem. Video games that teach violence, shows that make it seem cool to be bad, rap music music all this BS sends young parents and their kids the wrong message. Only one way to stop them. Hit them where it really hurts in the pocket book.

[lbaker]

JONAH was being bullied??:mad::mad: OUR J?? :eek::mad: Gimme the bus corner and I can do some bullying myself... I had plenty of experience when I was in school ~ :(

[Karen]

I was bullied on the school bus, but it didn't bother me much, or have any long-term effect. I knew I was gonna grow up and be a better smarter, more successful person than any of the girls bullying me, so just dealt with it and talked back. It never got physical, just verbal. But I have siblings, and would have done okay if it got physical, as I was not afraid of hitting back!

[Cataholic]

JONAH was being bullied??:mad::mad: OUR J?? :eek::mad: Gimme the bus corner and I can do some bullying myself... I had plenty of experience when I was in school ~ :(

I am telling you....I couldn't really believe what I was feeling! "I will cut your eye out with a piece of glass". From a girl. :( First day, first ride to school.

That was followed by the boy hitting him. :(

[caseysmom]

I am telling you....I couldn't really believe what I was feeling! "I will cut your eye out with a piece of glass". From a girl. :( First day, first ride to school.

That was followed by the boy hitting him. :(

OMG I would be on that bus cussing like that Dad!

[Bonny]

It is the continued bullying to one person that has to stop. Other children seem to get in on it too. The school bus is a bad place for that to happen. The driver is trying to drive the bus & doesn't have time to be watching children especially in the very back of the bus. Things have not changed in fact I think they have gotten worse for children today. :( Having it televised on the Today show has brought it more into the light. I hope they do a follow up on it.

[phesina]

GOOD FOR THIS FATHER!!!!!

Lots of love :love::love::love: and encouragement to him and his family from yet another who was verbally bullied all through high school.. GRRRR, I will get into that more when I have a bit more time, if you all can stomach yet another sad tale..

It isn't just the actual bullies but all the others who remain silent that make its effect so deep and so insidious.

[kitten645]

"Kids just being kids" is a BS answer in EVERY case. As human beings, we have a moral compass. Don't tell me these kids don't know what they are doing is wrong. I don't have kids of my own, but am known for defending my family and friends. I was out with friends and this guy kept banging into my friend and just generally rude. About the fourth time, I got in front of him and pushed him against the wall and said "If you don't STOP it, you'll regret it." My friends died laughing cause I'm 5'2" and the guy was over six feet.
Good for this dad for standing up for his daughter. That's his JOB! :love:

[wombat2u2004]

No, but I do remember you dipping my pigtail in the ink well!!:p;)

Well, I needed to do that so I could paint that "Smiley" on the back of your shirt. :p

[Scooter's Mom]

I was bullied by my across-the-street neighbor growing up.
She did the following over several years:
banged my head against a brick wall
hit me in the head with a croquet mallet
made me eat an orange peel
kicked me in the back while wearing steel-toed cowboy boots
had a few of her friends hold me down (arms/legs) while she beat me until I was unconscious.

That didn't include the name-calling and prank calls, etc.

My parents spoke to her parents MANY times. But her mother was a rotten, evil woman... (our next door neighbor was in the hospital dying and the mom had the kids clean out the fridge and throw every piece of gross rotting food on the dying man's vehicle). We even filed charges against her for the medical expenses when she beat me into unconsciousness.

I thanked GOD the day that bully dropped out of school.

[Catty1]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2012959680_busthreats22.html

Dad apologizes for threatening daughter's tormentors

A Florida dad who got national media attention after threatening children on a school bus for bullying his disabled 13-year-old daughter issued apologies Tuesday on national television and during a local news conference

By The Orlando Sentinel

* Video | Dad who stormed bus apologizes for actions (http://video.ap.org/?t=By%20Section/U.S.&g=0921dv_fla_angry_father&f=wasee)

LAKE MARY, Fla. — A Florida dad who got national media attention after threatening children on a school bus for bullying his disabled 13-year-old daughter issued apologies Tuesday on national television and during a local news conference.

James Willie Jones, of Sanford, Fla., apologized for his behavior during a news conference and an appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America."

http://blogs.trb.com/features/family/parenting/blog/JamesJones.jpg

He acknowledged he acted like a bully and repeatedly said he was sorry for what happened.

"I regret for all the kids that weren't involved and had nothing to do with this (incident) that was on that bus at the time. ... I don't think we should promote bullying," Jones told "Good Morning America" host Robin Roberts.

Jones, 42, said the reason for his actions — which included threats to kill the children and school-bus driver — was the safety and well-being of his daughter, who suffers from cerebral palsy.

"When I walked my daughter to the bus that morning," he told The Associated Press, "she broke down in tears and finally told me about the bullies who had tormented her on the school bus. She was afraid.

"In the heat of the moment, I wanted to confront the individuals ... as the protector of my daughter I could not stand by and helplessly watch her suffer."

Jones and his wife, Deborah Jones, said their daughter remains hospitalized for stress she suffered in connection with the incident.

Video surveillance shows Jones boarding a Seminole County school bus on Sept. 3 and launching into a profanity-laden rant.

Seminole County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested Jones on charges of disorderly conduct and disturbing a school function.

[lizbud]

I was bullied by my across-the-street neighbor growing up.
She did the following over several years:
banged my head against a brick wall
hit me in the head with a croquet mallet
made me eat an orange peel
kicked me in the back while wearing steel-toed cowboy boots
had a few of her friends hold me down (arms/legs) while she beat me until I was unconscious.

That didn't include the name-calling and prank calls, etc.

My parents spoke to her parents MANY times. But her mother was a rotten, evil woman... (our next door neighbor was in the hospital dying and the mom had the kids clean out the fridge and throw every piece of gross rotting food on the dying man's vehicle). We even filed charges against her for the medical expenses when she beat me into unconsciousness.

I thanked GOD the day that bully dropped out of school.



Good Lord, didn't you have any brothers or sisters? She would never have
gotten away with any of that with my family. That's terrible.:(

[Scooter's Mom]

Good Lord, didn't you have any brothers or sisters? She would never have
gotten away with any of that with my family. That's terrible.:(

I have 3 older brothers - only 1 that I grew up with. He was raised not to hit girls, but hit her one time to get her to back off of me.

She was a nightmare to live near.