Protecting All
Students
EDITORIAL, NYTimes on
the Web, February 24, 2007
Like all too many school districts,
Toms River, N.J., has done a poor job of protecting gay students from bullying.
According to the New Jersey Supreme Court, the district punished students for
being one minute late for class, but made harassing another child for being gay
punishable only after a third offense.
In a landmark ruling this week, the court unanimously held that public school
districts like Toms River’s are liable for damages if they fail to take
reasonable steps to stop prolonged anti-gay harassment of a student by another
student. It correctly found that students had a right to be protected
against this sort of abuse.
The decision changes the legal landscape in New Jersey, and we hope it will be
the start of a new national approach to the problem.
A study by the National Mental Health Association a few years ago found that
more than three-quarters of teenagers reported that students who were gay or
thought to be gay were teased and bullied in their schools and communities.
The anonymous student who brought the suit against Toms River schools clearly
deserved better. He complained of being taunted almost daily from fourth
grade on. In high school, he was physically attacked twice, and he said he
eventually had to change schools. School administrators disciplined the
worst offenders, but failed to address the overall school climate by taking such
basic steps as talking to parents and holding student assemblies to make it
clear that harassment would not be tolerated.
The court’s ruling provides much-needed support to some of the nation’s most
vulnerable young people, and it sets a worthy standard for courts and educators
nationwide.
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