That Judas kiss of betrayal from school

The Sunday Gleaner of April 21 carried a piece captioned ‘A kiss then heartache’. The reporter Christopher Thomas noted, “A St James mother is fuming, months after her 16-year-old daughter’s expulsion from St James High School as she faces difficulties in getting her enrolled at another institution in the parish, after the teen was reportedly captured on video kissing a female colleague.”

Who will realise that this 16-year-old girl has been victimised by those who should have been professional, caring, and understanding in a situation of childhood play? Who will even realise that she is struggling to be a survivor of gender-based violence (GBV)? If a video was circulated with a boy kissing a girl, his space in school would have been secure. This is because heteronormative assumptions often drive self-righteous positions and appease public sentiment.

The discarded child needs an advocate. Who will cry out for her? Who will acknowledge that this minor who has no history of disciplinary concerns at school, ought not to have been expelled?

People are tired of seeing parents being treated with the send-the-fool-a-little-further approach.

RAY OF HOPE

The only ray of hope in the article was clinical psychologist Georgia Rose’s word of wisdom. She said, “I don’t think that should be a reason for expulsion. If children are engaging in activities which the school believes is contrary to its doctrines and rules, it is always an opportunity to educate the child, and I am not sure how a child kissing another child warrants expulsion, because we were all children and children engage in different types of behaviours. I don’t think that is ever something to expel a child for.”

The clinical psychologist also said what every school principal should already know: “We need to recognise that when children are going through puberty, and they are in the stage of adolescence, they do a lot of things that they may not do later in life. There’s going to be a lot of experimentation, a lot of pushing boundaries, a lot of testing out of self, and our role as adults is to guide them in a healthy way. The very heavy and extreme punitive measures have the potential to negatively impact children’s emotional well-being, and such a heavy punishment for a single act that doesn’t hurt anyone can lead to guilt and shame and embarrassment and put them at risk for mental health issues and other disorders.”

“A kiss then heartache.” There is so much worse going on in our schools today. Too many of our children are being failed by those who are duty bound to protect their interests. Too much focus is being placed on appearances when many things which are yet to meet the eye or social media are brewing and when the pot boils over, we are going to see that some of those in authority are doing much more than a kiss! Who is feeling the heartache from the injustice done to this child?

It is my hope that the child who is yet to find a place in a school will be able to do so, before my rant goes to print, albeit without any offer of help.

So, you really mean that there wasn’t a better way in which this matter could have been handled? What were the risks facing the well-being of the school community had she been treated in a positive way and allowed to continue her education? Did the offence of posting the video require an expulsion?

BULLYING AND INDISCIPLINE

In recent days we have seen yet again the effects of bullying and indiscipline among our children. We also continue to see the need for a serious curriculum and culture of character education in our nation’s schools. We know that this would make a massive difference over time.

Who will answer the many questions? Who will seek justice for this Jamaican citizen who is a minor. Who will speak for this child who should be in school? Who will facilitate ongoing education for school administrators to ensure that this nonsense never happens again? Was anyone from Church concerned about the injustice done to the child?

We continue to see the value of the Spotlight Initiative’s interventions re sensitising awareness around gender-based violence and concerns around stigma and discrimination. In accordance with our 2030 development goals, may we also hasten to advance human rights and justice for all, starting with the education and empowerment of all our nation’s children.

If we do not address these draconian approaches, exercised with impunity against our nation’s children, the Judas kiss of betrayal will continue to secure the chains of injustice. The hair police will also continue unchecked as afro-Jamaican children are punished for their African hairstyles in schools.

Too much has been known and written about the value of character education for us to not have a purpose-driven character education curriculum effected on a national scale. It will take much more than singing about the breaking of chains at school devotions. Oh, that we would seek the best for all our children!

Fr Sean Major-Campbell is an Anglican priest and advocate for human dignity and human rights. Send feedback to seanmajorcampbell@yahoo.com or columns@gleanerjm.com.