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LITTLE GIRL LOST PART TWO ALEXA GONZALEZ V. NEW YORK CITY
Posted by: Darrell Castle
February 19, 2010
Topic: Personal Injury
"There was no profanity, no hate, just the words, 'I love my friends Abby and Faith. Lex was here 2/1/10:)' scrawled on the classroom desk with a green marker." For this offense, according to a report from CNN, 12 year old Alexa was handcuffed behind her back, and with tears streaming down her face, hauled away by police in full view of the worst possible audience for a preadolescent girl, her classmates.
"They put handcuffs on me, and I couldn't believe it, 'Alexa recalled. 'I didn't want them to see me being handcuffed, thinking I'm a bad person.' Although Alexa is no longer facing suspension from school, according to a New York City Department of Education spokeswoman, her case calls into question the use of zero tolerance policies in schools.
Emma Jordan-Simpson, executive director of the Children's Defense Fund, said "we are arresting them at younger and younger ages and in cases that used to be handled by a trip to the principal's office." New York City school security officers are now under the New York City Police Department and must enforce the zero tolerance policy. There are nearly 5000 employees in the NYPD School Safety Division and that number exceeds the total police force in Washington D.C.
Alexa's mother said she spent her three days off from school throwing up and it was a challenge for her to catch up on her homework when she returned to school. She has never been in trouble prior to her arrest as a "doodler." Margie Feinberg, an education department spokesperson, said 'our mission is to make sure that public schools are a safe and supportive environment for all students.'
Well Margie, you are failing miserably in your mission. You have made the public schools into a hostile environment for normal children like Alexa Gonzalez, and your zero tolerance policy is a complete failure unless its real mission is to turn normal children into robots by forcing them to live in fear that they are being watched for the slightest hint of normal behavior.
Is it possible for this society to get any more stupid? Just when I think that it is not possible, it does. This new world we are creating is one that is apparently devoid of what used to be called common sense, but now more closely resembles a war against humanity as that species has been traditionally perceived. For Alexa and her family, fortunately, a good personal injury lawyer will make the people of New York City pay for her humiliation. No wonder that state is bankrupt.
