Wow -- How Rotten: 7-Year-Old Made To Eat Lunch By Himself For Three Days For Not Believing In God
This kid was in second grade at the time.
From the text of the filed complaint, via Volokh at the WaPo:
In February of 2015, A.B. was a second grader at Forest Park Elementary School, a school that is within Fort Wayne Community Schools. During a discussion with classmates on the playground he responded to a question by indicating that he did not go to church because he did not believe in God. This resulted in his teacher interrogating the child as to his beliefs and requiring the child to sit by himself during lunch and not talk to his classmates during lunch for three days. This violates the First Amendment. The defendant's actions caused great distress to A.B. and resulted in the child being ostracized by his peers past the three-day "banishment." No meaningful attempt has been made to remedy these injuries and the child seeks his damages.
The allegations:
7. In February of 2015, A.B. was a second-grade student at Forest Park Elementary School.
8. His teacher was Michelle Meyer.
9. On or about February 23, 2015, A.B. and his classmates were on the playground during the school day immediately before lunch when A.B. was asked by one of his classmates if he attended church.
10. A.B. responded by stating that he did not go to church and did not believe in God. He also stated that it was fine with him if his inquiring classmate believed in God.
11. The classmate said that A.B. had hurt her feelings by saying that he did not believe in God and started to cry.
12. A playground supervisor reported to Ms. Meyer what had happened.
13. At that point the students were going to lunch and Ms. Meyer asked A.B. if he had told the girl that he did not believe in God and A.B. said he had and asked what he had done wrong.
14. Ms. Meyer asked A.B. if he went to church, whether his family went to church, and whether his mother knew how he felt about God.
15. She also asked A.B. if he believed that maybe God exists.
16. Ms. Meyer told A.B. that she was very concerned about what he had done and that she was going to contact his mother - although she never did.
17. This was very upsetting to A.B. as he was made to feel that he had done something wrong.
18. A day or two after the initial incident, A.B. and his fellow-student who had become upset with his comment on the playground were sent to another adult employed at Forest Park Elementary School.
19. This person asked them what the problem was and A.B. indicated that his classmate had become upset when, in response to her question, he had said he did not go to church and did not believe in God.
20. Upon hearing this, the adult employee looked at A.B.'s classmate and stated that she should not be worried and should be happy she has faith and that she should not listen to A.B.'s bad ideas. She then patted the little girl's hand.
21. This was, again, extremely upsetting to A.B. as it reinforced his feeling that he had done something very wrong.
22. On the day of the incident and for an additional two days thereafter, Ms. Meyer required that A.B. sit by himself during lunch and told him he should not talk to the other students and stated that this was because he had offended them. This served to reinforce A.B.'s feeling that he had committed some transgression that justified his exclusion.
23. When V.S. was told by A.B. what had happened she called the Assistant Principal of the school and demanded an explanation.
24. The Assistant Principal set up a three-way telephone conversation with V.S., Ms. Meyer and himself.
25. Ms. Meyer confirmed her involvement in this matter as noted above.
26. V.S. demanded that the school not isolate her son or punish him for his beliefs.
27. After three days A.B. was allowed to join his classmates for lunch and all sanctions and restrictions were lifted.
28. After this three-day period, and after V.S. complained, A.B. was told by Ms. Meyer and other teachers that he could believe what he wants.
29. But this was after A.B. had been publicly separated from his classmates and informed that he could not speak to them. All the students in his class heard and were aware of this. He was publicly shamed and made to feel that his personal beliefs were terribly wrong.
30. No efforts were made to correct the damages that had been done.
31. A.B. came home from school on multiple occasions crying saying that he knows that everyone at school - teachers and students - hate him.
32. Even now there are some classmates who will not talk to A.B.
33. Even now A.B. remains anxious and fearful about school, which is completely contrary to how he felt before this incident.
34. At all times defendant acted, and refused to act, under color of state law.
Legal claims:
35. The actions of defendant violated rights secured to A.B. by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Request for relief:
WHEREFORE, A.B. requests that this Court:1. Accept jurisdiction of this case and set it for hearing.
2. Award him his damages after trial.
3. Award him his costs and reasonable attorneys' fees.
4. Award him all other proper relief.
via @freerangekids
I thought Jesus said to "suffer the little children", not "make the little children suffer".
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at August 3, 2015 9:31 PM
There's clearly a reading comprehension issue in Indiana.
Amy Alkon at August 3, 2015 9:36 PM
Kentucky too, apparently.
Fortunately the ACLU believes that handcuffing 8 and 9 year old special-needs kids isn't a good larnin' strategy.
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at August 3, 2015 9:42 PM
I believe in God, but there is no excuse for punishing anyone who does not, especially a child.
No excuse for this religious intolerance, although at least this type of intolerance doesn't involve stoning as in some other parts of the world.
Trust at August 3, 2015 11:15 PM
@Trust
Yeah this 7 yr old brat should be lucky ISIS isn't his neighbor! Ammirite!!
#sigh
G at August 4, 2015 1:38 AM
In some areas of the Midwest and South, Christians are a huge, and very intolerant majority. The very idea that someone might not be a Christian is just shocking. The far-away places you hear about on the news don't count, but real people they talk to and see every day? Of course they are Christian! What, you're not? Are you for real? And you're letting your kid grow up as a little heathen?
Much of my family is like this.
The problem is, unfortunately, entirely understandable. If you are Christian, and take your religion seriously, you have it on the very highest authority that your beliefs are right. Therefore everyone else is wrong. You are required to try to save the heathen.
Irritating as hell, but understandable.
a_random_guy at August 4, 2015 2:01 AM
Unfortunately, this kind of ignorance is inflicted on children too often in public schools. For example:
In Texas, a Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District teacher told an elementary school student she can't read the Bible in school and is not even allowed to bring the Bible to school. The school district corrected the teacher.
A teacher at Park Lakes Elementary School in Fort Lauderdale told a student he was not allowed to read a Bible during free reading time in her class, and even had him come up to the front of the class and dial his father on the phone so she could leave an asinine voice mail. School administrators corrected the teacher.
Two students in an elementary school in Georgia were told to leave their class each day while the teacher led the rest of the class in a prayer that the two students didn't want to participate in. School administrators corrected the teacher.
In Tennessee an elementary student attending the Cannon County REACH after school program was told by staff he could read any book except the Bible, and told him to put his Bible away. When he refused the staff tried to take it from him by force. The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee intervened on behalf of the student, and informed the Cannon County REACH Program on students' religious rights.
Students at Pine Creek High School near Colorado Springs, who had been holding a prayer meeting during free time every day for three years, were told they could no longer pray, read the Bible or discuss religious topics because other students might be offended.
A lot of these kinds of cases are misunderstandings blown out of proportion by the media and advocacy organizations on one side or the other. In most cases errant teachers are corrected by the school districts they work for. Sometimes an outside organization intervenes on behalf of a student. Once in a great while a matter is resolved in court.
Ultimately, the vast majority of students are free to practice their religion or no religion, and to express their religious beliefs, whatever they are, in any way that's not disruptive.
The ACLU's letter to the Cannon County REACH Program pretty clearly explains public school students' religious rights:
http://www.aclu-tn.org/pdfs/CannonCoRedactedLetterFinal%20%282%29.pdf
Ken R at August 4, 2015 2:24 AM
Let's see, what would I have done in the teacher's position?
I would have explained to the crying little girl that people don't have to believe in God in this country, and that people can be whatever religion they want, or have no religion if that's what they want.
I would have assured A.B. that he did nothing wrong.
Hopefully, that would have been enough, but perhaps, if he's being made fun of by his classmates, I would have announced to the class that bullying is wrong and it would not be tolerated, and that there would be consequences.
What would you have done in the teacher's place?
Patrick at August 4, 2015 4:06 AM
I grew up with kids behaving terribly to me for being Jewish. Not in the deep South. In the Detroit suburbs. Kids didn't originate this thinking; they got it from their parents and from their churches.
Amy Alkon at August 4, 2015 5:21 AM
Perhaps I'm overreacting but in today's easy access to information the Principle and VP should have overreacted in favor of the kid ("You did WHAT!").
If you can/do not have the foresight/compassion to understand how children react to anything or anyone that is different you are a piss-poor Christian adult. This is not the 60's and even a small rural school should have professionals on staff not a volunteer meaning well.
In this case the teacher should lose her ability to teach in this State (go somewhere else) and the Administration should be demoted and transferred.
Simple.
Bob in Texas at August 4, 2015 5:30 AM
That's an awful brutal thing to do to a little kid. Bullying's bullying no matter who does it, and it's startling to see a teacher behave as she did. Did nothing in her training equip her to deal with young children believing different things?
And where was the Principal in all this, besides sitting at the desk, groaning "Oh, noooooo?"
And another little kid crying because A.B. said he neither attended church nor believed in God? That's one sensitive little kid, there!
Old RPM Daddy (OldRPMDaddy at GMail dot com) at August 4, 2015 5:55 AM
All kinds of sub-plots in this... was A.B. punished for not believing in God, or was he punished because a girl cried? If he had said that to another boy, and the boy had slugged him, what would have been the outcome?
Cousin Dave at August 4, 2015 6:30 AM
Cousin Dave: All kinds of sub-plots in this... was A.B. punished for not believing in God, or was he punished because a girl cried? If he had said that to another boy, and the boy had slugged him, what would have been the outcome?
Or even if the girl had slugged him.
He should have not been punished for either "offense." The crying girl should have been counseled that the boy can believe however he wants because it's a free country and that's no reason to cry.
That teacher needs to lose her job.
Patrick at August 4, 2015 7:06 AM
It absolutely is a brutal thing to do to a kid. Exactly the right word.
The fact that someone gets upset at your remark doesn't mean that it's wrong or even "mean."
Amy Alkon at August 4, 2015 7:08 AM
Until a jury comes back with a win for the kid, I'm going to be skeptical. I wasn't there, I didn't see the incident, and I don't know what transpired.
All I do know is that I have a self-interested telling me they was wronged.
I R A Darth Aggie at August 4, 2015 7:17 AM
Whoops, "self-interested party".
I R A Darth Aggie at August 4, 2015 7:17 AM
As Ken points out this isn't an unusual circumstance. And it isn't even restricted to religion. Also, try having a teacher's kid in class. Most are bullies because they can do no wrong. Other teachers won't punish them. Many teachers practice 'kick out the victim' style discipline. After all, if you don't have any victims you won't have any bullying, right?
And for those asking where the principal was, how old are you? They were obviously at the administration building. Where else would a principal be?
Ben at August 4, 2015 7:39 AM
G
I have no excuse and do not condone in any way what happened to this child. I'm just grateful that the religious intolerance we have here, as inexcusable as it is here, is thankfully rarely violent.
Trust at August 4, 2015 7:40 AM
And you're right, Amy. I didn't use the word "brutal," but it is, now that I think about it.
This teacher just communicated to an entire class, if not an entire school that not believing in God is a particularly horrible thing, deserving of being shunned and punished.
Those kids are probably now overwhelmed by the magnitude of the punishment. Now the whole school thinks this boy is especially wicked and evil. Sort of a "Jane Eyre" kind of stigma.
That kid should probably be transferred to another school. No amount of restitution or punishment will ever make things right for that kid. That teacher is a child abuser.
Patrick at August 4, 2015 8:04 AM
Imagine the hell he'd have endured if he said he didn't believe in Anthropomorphic Global Warming.
Unix-Jedi at August 4, 2015 9:59 AM
Or if he'd brought an Oreo for lunch.
Conan the Grammarian at August 4, 2015 11:56 AM
I went to Catholic school with a kid who didn't have a declared religion - his mixed-religion parents decided he could choose a religion for himself (or not) when he reached sixteen.
None of the teachers were taken aback, nor did they torment or lecture him. He did not have to go through the Confirmation preparations with the rest of the class, but he still had to attend the religion classes that the rest of us had to attend. Beyond not having a declared religion, he was just another kid in the class.
It helped that the teachers were accustomed to having non-Catholic kids attend the school.
Conan the Grammarian at August 4, 2015 12:03 PM
I agree "brutal" is the right word.
Kids can be cruel towards each other in their teasing. And it is up to the adults to try to avoid or fix any such nonsense. Okay, so they don't always see and hear everything. But, in the very least, I would expect the adults to NOT be engaging in such as stupid case of ostracizing/bullying any kid for any reason.
Well, maybe, if the kid was an axe murder, then it would be okay.
But, otherwise, that teacher didn't learn anything about child development in her education classes. The school that gave her a degree should hang their head in shame. (of course, maybe her school was too busy indoctrinating its students in leftist theology to actually teach them anything about how to properly educate kids)
charles at August 4, 2015 12:13 PM
"Imagine the hell he'd have endured if he said he didn't believe in Anthropomorphic Global Warming."
And who would have delivered him to that particular hell? The bible-believing conservative teacherpreacher?
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at August 4, 2015 12:15 PM
Here's an idea. NSFW.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdhDq5mgkx4
"It's nice to see how hate can make you do nice things every now and again."
Steve Daniels at August 4, 2015 2:49 PM
Conan: I went to Catholic school...
My deepest sympathy.
Patrick at August 4, 2015 10:12 PM
This is a response from the school district that employs the teacher being sued:
“Fort Wayne Community Schools values the diversity in the students, staff and families in our district in all aspects, including race, religion, color, gender, national origin, sexuality, disability or native language. A lawsuit recently filed against Forest Park Teacher Michelle Meyer alleges that she did not uphold these beliefs. However, an investigation conducted by FWCS immediately upon notification of the incident found no merit in the allegations included in the lawsuit. Our investigation in March found she acted appropriately in dealing with an issue between students in a significantly different manner than detailed in the lawsuit. As a school district, we feel we must defend and protect the reputation of our staff when members are being unfairly maligned. While it is always a citizen’s right to pursue legal action, we are saddened that this has become an issue threatening the integrity of one of our teachers, of our staff, of our schools and of our community.”
Ken R at August 5, 2015 12:51 AM
"...in a significantly different manner than detailed in the lawsuit."
I know and have heard about plenty of cases of school children being bullied by ignorant school teachers, administrators and peers because of their beliefs about God, religion, politics, social issues, their sexual orientation, their gender identity, or their beliefs about the wonderful global warming AlGore keeps promising us will soon come. There are teachers who lack the maturity to be role models for children and act like bullies and brats themselves.
But even more are children, not yet clear about boundaries applicable to the expression of their (or their parents') opinions and beliefs, who violate a boundary, get redirected by a teacher, misunderstand or don't like what just went down, and then later at home, tell Mommy a version of the event that portrays him- or herself as an innocent, helpless victim of adult meanness. A story that only a loving, protective mother would believe - or maybe an organization that advocates for persecuted victims would believe.
It should not be surprising if a 7-year-old child of atheists or Christians or lesbians or prolifers or warmists, ridicules a classmate for not believing what their parents taught them is right - behavior which their parents would probably not condone. Seven-year-olds still have a lot to learn about tolerance, civility and being nice. Even 17-year-olds still have a lot to learn. But we should be more skeptical of allegations against teachers of persecuting and punishing children solely for their beliefs. It does happen, but usually it didn't.
Ken R at August 5, 2015 1:25 AM
But we should be more skeptical of allegations against teachers of persecuting and punishing children solely for their beliefs.
Why?
What makes more sense: That a 7-year old was bullied, or that a school district does its own "investigation" and finds no basis for a (costly?) lawsuit against them? Certainly we can acknowledge some embellishment on the part of the child, but not this curt dismissal from the other side, yes?
DrCos at August 5, 2015 3:56 AM
Good points, KenR.
________________________________
All kinds of sub-plots in this... was A.B. punished for not believing in God, or was he punished because a girl cried? If he had said that to another boy, and the boy had slugged him, what would have been the outcome?
Posted by: Cousin Dave at August 4, 2015 6:30 AM
_________________________________
Assuming the description of the incident was correct (as it may not be): If this were the same school and teacher and some evangelist boy scolded a girl for not believing in God, making her cry, I doubt the teacher would have punished him. Maybe she would have told him, in the future, to phrase things a bit differently, but that would have been about it.
Again, if the account is correct, A.B. was perfectly polite to the girl, and according to point #14, the teacher was a lot more concerned about the boy's lack of religion than about the girl's upset feelings, per se.
lenona at August 5, 2015 9:00 AM
And, I would add, the teacher would, at least, likely have spoken sternly to the girl!
lenona at August 5, 2015 11:57 AM
DrCos: "What makes more sense: That a 7-year old was bullied, or that a school district does its own "investigation" and finds no basis for a (costly?) lawsuit against them? Certainly we can acknowledge some embellishment on the part of the child, but not this curt dismissal from the other side, yes?"
Just read the allegations. The allegations listed above just don't make sense. And as Judge Judy says: "If it doesn't make sense, it's probably not true."
A more likely scenario: Seven-year-old A.B. got in trouble at school, probably for repeating derogatory comments about religious people that he heard from his parents in the privacy of their home, towards the little girl who cried (that's purely speculation on my part, but more common among 7-year-olds than the scenario laid out in the allegations). The teacher corrected him and told him she was going to tell his mother (allegation #16), but she never did. Little A.B. probably knew that mother would not be happy if teacher told on him, so he told his story of being the the target of totally unreasonable, unprovoked hostility and persecution by his bigoted, fundamentalist teacher, and his credulous, loving mother was offended and wants her precious little angel avenged.
Even in the Bible belt, even in Indiana, people who don't attend church are not uncommon. In Indiana about 40% of the adult population attends church on a regular basis. (Highest attendance in the country is Utah at 51%) Regular church goers are in the minority. It's just not likely that little A.B. is the only child in the school who doesn't go to church. It is likely that little A.B.'s crying classmate has a lot of exposure to children and adults who don't attend church, and probably wouldn't start crying if little A.B. politely informed her that he is one of the 60% or so who didn't go to church and it was fine with him if she did (again, this is only speculation on my part, and I wouldn't put it past a little girl, or an adult woman, to run crying to authority in an attempt to get a boy or man in trouble)
Mother's ACLU lawyers are not suing the school district, only the teacher. Wise decision. With little A.B.'s tale of persecution being the only evidence, suing a school district with a $280+ Million budget would be a short-lived, futile endeavor. The lone teacher doesn't have the means and doesn't have a chance unless some well funded advocate steps in on her side. If that happens I predict that the lawsuit will be dropped.
It's a public school, not a private Christian school. Even in Indiana, the ideology supported in the public school system is more likely to lean toward liberal/progressive/leftist/politically correct than conservative Christian, and more likely to be hostile to Christian values than to secular. But there are rare cases when non-believers are the victims - see my comment above for an example. So I wouldn't totally rule it out.
A Christian teacher who acted in the way described in the allegations would more likely be thrown under the bus than defended by the school district.
Basically this whole story and lawsuit smells like the result of 7-year-old mischievous BS blown out of proportion by a devoted, over-reactive mother and advocacy lawyers with a shortage of cases.
Ken R at August 5, 2015 3:17 PM
Ken R - I'm guessing you've never lived in Indiana. I lived in a small city an hour's drive away from Fort Wayne until last year, and this story is completely believable to me. Midwestern small towns are extremely close-knit and conservative, so anything you do that's not like everyone else - like not believing in God - makes you stand out immediately. You'd be surprised at how many dirty looks my husband and I used to get just for being a multiracial couple in public. People also often assumed that, because I'm not Caucasian, I couldn't speak English well and that I wasn't Christian. My Caucasian husband was born and raised in the Midwest, but when he first moved there and tried to attend church, they made him feel like such an outsider that he eventually stopped.
Believe me, there's a reason we moved out of Indiana as soon as we could. Shaming a kid for not believing in God absolutely sounds like something that would have happened there.
Jina at August 7, 2015 4:30 PM
Leave a comment