At present the community places way too much emphasis on Sports, these kids are often (not always) spoiled and their behavior is arrogant and self-centered. My wife teaches school at Artesia High in Calif and the Basketball team has been in the State Championships many times in the last few years. Some of these kids are not well grounded to put it mildly.
Very good point. The cynic in me says that most schools across the country know perfectly well exactly which jocks are engaging in violent hazing against whom, but never have any intention of doing anything about it, lest they harm "school spirit" and, for that matter, school revenue. No doubt the jocks themselves in such schools are acutely aware of their sarcosanct status.
This is just off the cuff, but speaking of the almighty buck, dollars might prove to be one way to clean up the schools from "jock itch" (that is, just made it up, the urge of jocks to haze other students knowing they will not face any punishment): Some people have posted that they had to pull their kids out of school or homeschool. A few high-profile, expensive civil suits forcing these school systems to pay up for such alternative educational arrangements might just be the Rx. After all it was the school's incompetence, indifference, cynical protection of their jock a$$et base, or all of the above that forced parents to take such expensive (perhaps life-saving) measures. Then watch these school administrators get off the dime and enforce disciplinary rules like they should have in the first place.
Another solution...school choice, spanning across cities & towns. It is hardly a new idea, not possible geographically in many places, but is probably in action in many places across US. IMO it is an idea whose time has come. Such an option gives kids an avenue out of an abusive situation (and for that matter out of an academically incompetent school system) into a new/better one.
Lastly...demand your local school board put in writing a formal anti-hazing policy as part of the school handbook by which the school is managed. Mandated punishments, suspensions for repeat offenders, loss of organized spoorts privileges. Such a policy commits the school publicly and perhaps even legally, to enforce the policy even handedly, no exceptions. To wit: I don't give a damn how far Johnny can
Just ideas...certainly better IMO than status quo, waiting for the next hazing victim to act out against others or take their own lives...
Final note: are there any readers out there from Japan? Can you speak to this issue within that country? What if anything has been done? There were a few very high profile student suicide cases due to egregious hazing, and the schools knew exactly what was going on and _chose_ to do nothing. One such case resulted in a civil suit and nominal damages, even that was an achievement. |
