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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRegretful message from a 3rd grade classmate: Befriend the Turpin children of the world.
Last edited Fri Feb 9, 2018, 12:34 PM - Edit history (2)
Remember the tortured Turpin children in California? At least one of them went to school in Texas.
This classmate's account is painful to read, but I don't blame the 8 year old, who has grown up into a caring, thoughtful person. And I think the advice he gives at the end is something everyone should heed.
The horrifying truth is that adults at Jennifer Turpin's school in Fort Worth, Texas, saw the little girl every day: her homeroom teacher, PE teacher, librarian, and every other adult who passed her in the hall. They saw how she looked and smelled and some of them had to have noticed that she was being bullied.
How do we know that? Because even a 3rd grade boy noticed and felt so bad that he tried to find her on Facebook, many years later -- in a vain attempt to assure himself that she was doing okay. Taha Muntajibuddin, the classmate of Jennifers (who was one of the older girls), never forgot how she was treated.
"Of course, none of us are responsible for the events that ensued, but you can't help but feel rotten when the classmate your peers made fun of for 'smelling like poop' quite literally had to sit in her own waste because she was chained to her bed," he wrote. "It is nothing but sobering to know that the person who sat across from you at the lunch table went home to squalor and filth while you went home to a warm meal and a bedtime story."
A whole family of children was tortured for decades because of the evil parents. But all this could have ended years ago if some of the ADULTS who saw and even smelled the children had picked up the phone and made a call.
Muntajibuddin was just a little boy and this isnt his fault. Now that hes an adult hes going to be a fine pediatrician sensitive and smart and observant. His young patients will be lucky to have him.
https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/crime_courts/2018/01/24/turpin-case-she-bullied-being-cootie-kid-now-one-classmate-feels-overwhelming-guilt/1061590001/
Taha Muntajibuddin wrote about his experience in a public Facebook post. And his final piece of advice is something all of us can teach our children:
Jennifer, despite being vehemently vilified by her peers, was still one of the most pleasant people I have had the opportunity to meet. She had this whimsical optimism to her that couldn't be dampened, couldn't be doused no matter what anybody threw at her. That cheerful disposition is what makes me certain that Jennifer will prevail. That one day, I'll remember to facebook stalk her, and see that she is living her best life. That despite being let down by her parents and by her peers alike, Jennifer rose above it all. And I'm going to be rooting for her, as her peer, as her classmate, as her friend. Jennifer Turpin: from "cootie girl" to "conquered the world."
https://www.facebook.com/taha618
JenniferJuniper
(4,515 posts)She was in my third grade class and showed up in dirty rags every day. Some days it was obvious she'd been beaten up. More often than not she had a black eye. She was such a frail little thing, but always smiling. Looking back, I think it's because she was happy to be at school and not at home.
I don't remember her being teased, but I'm guessing she was. All of us kids knew she was a badly battered child. It was the early 1970's and I don't think there was any mandatory reporting. But we nine year olds knew. And no adult did a thing because it continued for as long as Joyce was in the school.
It's 45 years later and I've long forgotten the faces of the the kids in my third grade class. But not Joyce. I can see her as clearly as if she were standing in front of me now. I hope she's okay.
pnwmom
(108,990 posts)their Joyces.
I was verbally bullied, like many kids are. The one thing I said to my kids is I hoped they would have a couple good friends, but I would never care how popular they were. I would be very upset, however, if I ever heard they were mean to another child.