It’s clear as day that our American schools are failing miserably to tackle the escalating bullying crisis. As parents, we feel powerless when we discover our children are victims of such vile actions. This powerlessness is born out of the negligence of school administrators and authorities, who consistently fall short in taking appropriate actions against bullies.
One Maryland mother, Kelly Sadik, epitomized the desperate lengths a parent might go to when she decided to handle her daughter’s bully personally, considering the ineffectiveness of the school authorities.
Recently, Sadik, 41, shadowed her daughter to Aberdeen Middle School. She made her way into her daughter’s classroom at around 8:15 am, ready to confront her daughter’s tormentor head-on. The negligent school authorities had not been sufficiently proactive in dealing with the bully, pushing Sadik to act. However, she overstepped the boundary when she allegedly assaulted the young bully, leaving her injured.
Captain Will Reiber of the local police department noted, “A verbal confrontation ensued. [Sadik] at one point placed their hands on the child, grabbing them in an effort to continue the conversation. Ultimately, a teacher was able to intervene.” This incident sheds light on the gross negligence and incompetence on the part of the school and its staff, who failed to stop this confrontation from escalating.
Sgt. Jason Neidig validated that Sadik did, in fact, lay hands on the 12-year-old bully. The mother’s frustration left “a pretty nice-sized red mark and bruise” on the young bully’s arm. This evidence of assault within a school, of all places, in Maryland, is a glaring indication of the lapses in school safety and security.
Following the incident, the bully’s father, Charles Bates, received a shocking phone call from the school. Bates was appalled by the news that his daughter, although guilty of bullying, was attacked right under the school’s watch, highlighting the institution’s lack of protective measures.
Expressing his concern to the local news outlet WBAL, Bates said, “The biggest concern was how quickly she got into the school, she bypassed the office, and then she got a direction location of where my daughter was.” His astonishment points to the evident flaws in school security measures, as an enraged parent was allowed to walk straight into a classroom.
Bates was horrified at the thought of an adult attacking his daughter, despite the fact that she had been bullying another child. He echoed every parent’s worst fear when he added, “She could have had a weapon. She could have had anything. That’s the most frightening part about it.”
Post-assault, Sadik faced arrest and charges of second-degree assault and trespassing. In response to the horrifying incident, Harford County Public Schools administration finally decided to break their silence.
Attempting to shift blame, Donoven Brooks, the school’s safety and security chief, said, “We vet folks that are coming into our schools. Protocol was followed today by our staff. Unfortunately, we had a parent that decided to break protocol.” This statement begs the question: If vigilant staff members and protocol-following systems are in place, how did such an event transpire?
This incident sparks an inevitable debate: Should the mother be held entirely at fault for attacking her daughter’s tormentor? The answer to that question may vary, but one thing remains clear – the schools that are supposed to ensure our children’s safety and wellbeing are failing in their responsibilities.
Until such institutions take bullying seriously, parents like Kelly Sadik will continue to live in fear and frustration, driven to take matters into their own hands.
WATCH the video below for more details: