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School failures blamed in bullying of Phoebe Prince

By
JANE WALSHE,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer
Published Sunday, January 31, 2010, 10:42 AM
Updated Sunday, January 31, 2010, 1:51 PM

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South Hadley school had not addressed the issue of cyberbullying.
South Hadley school had not addressed the issue of cyberbullying.


A bullying expert has spoken to teenagers and parents at South Hadley high school  in Massachussetts following the suicide of Irish student Phoebe Prince, and has found them angry with the school’s response.

“The kids were frustrated,’’ Barbara Coloroso told the Boston Globe. Coloroso also advised Columbine High School after two boys who were bullied shot 13 other people. “They wanted to know what could have been done to prevent Phoebe’s death. It appeared to them that nothing was being done.’’

Locals in South Hadley are upset because the school has not yet moved against the bullies. In a comment on Irishcentral's website one parent wrote that at a school committee meeting last night "parents came forward and spoke of the brutal teasing that their own children have been subjected to. This has been an issue for many years and the school committee has done nothing about it." 

The school has responded that in punishing the bullies it must stick to what law enforcers advise. But Coloroso, who also visited the school in September 2009, said South Hadley High has not implemented the measures she suggested then, according to the Globe.

“They said they had a warning and suspension policy in place,” she said. “But it was nebulous. And the policy didn’t include cyberbullying.’’

She added, “There’s got to be a procedure in place to determine how they handle the bully, how they protect the target, and what they are going to do with any bystander who may have contributed to this mess and protect them if they are a witness. They don’t have that yet.’’

Many of the torments aimed at Prince were online, the bullies even vandalizing the facebook page set up in her memory. “What the community, and even more so the students, needs is a strong antibullying policy that explicitly explains what it is. And it has to include cyberbullying and all forms of hazing,’’ Coloroso told the Globe.

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4 Comments

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ainsleyx | Mar 31, 2010, 12:30 AM EDT
Bullying is disgusting. It can't be just dismissed as a rite of passage, as it has obviously crossed the lime! The parents of the bullies and the officials should definitely be charged. School should be a safe place!

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feliciamaisey | Feb 15, 2010, 02:21 PM EST
I want to know why her parents and school officials did not do more when they saw changes in her. It was obvious her mental state was declining and I don't care how great an actress one is, you can't hide that from your parents. Don't take me wrong, I am in no way blaming or accusing her parents of being anything than caring and loving, but something is so afoul here. Why didn't her friends do more, tell their parents? Scream for school intervention. It seems as if so many knew about it and if this young girl didn't worry her parents with the sordid details, then why didn't her peers who befriended her. It seems so far beyond comprehension that anyone would disrespecy memory and ruin a memorial, that this whole case screams for justice for this poor girl, who thought it better to die than to face her life as it were for even one more day. I see this more and more, and it happens ot the rich, the poor and so on. As a society, its as if we make excuses for the bullies and blame the victims, but no-one is truly willing to stand up and help. It is why children are dying in droves and women are beaten every second by their paramours--why and what are we afraid of? Why are we blinded to the pain of others?

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MotherIrish | Feb 01, 2010, 09:18 AM EST
It starts at home!! Parents pay more attention to a big house, great vacations, etc than what their kids are doing. NO kid under 18 should have a computer that can not be monitored by parents. Find out what you kids are talking about - or not taking at all. Bullies are made not born. It is not just what goes on in school. Keep your kids close - through high school, eat at least one meal as in dinner together DAILY. Turn off the TV and talk. Also less TV, do not buy then or let them use violent movies, DVD's, Nintendo games etc. And don't think that girls are not just mean to others. Be wary and be aware. If you child seems depressed, he or she most likely is. Get them help no matter the cost. Keep you kid alive and keep you kid on the straight and narrow. It also helps to have a two-2- parent home.

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cdoc7264 | Jan 31, 2010, 02:03 PM EST
I am disgusted by the fact that even after this young person felt that she had to make that choice with regards to her life, that people still desecrated her memorial. To bring a person to the point that they consider taking thier own life, let alone actually going through with it, I feel is more than 'bullying', it's a form of mental torture. Even if the person/s involved did'nt intend for this outcome, they should still be accountable for contributing to it. Contributal neglegance in causing someone's death doesn't look good on a college application. It seems that parents of these 'bullies' are more interested in getting thier 'little angels' into good colleges instead of teaching core values.

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