Posted on 02/09/2012 9:13:43 PM PST by FailDaily.TK
A Minnesota mom is fuming after her 9-year-old son was suspended from school for mimicking Michael Jackson's famous groin-grabbing moves during a performance of "Billie Jean" at a fundraiser last week
Mindy Boberg says the principal of St. Stanislaus in Winona, Pat Bowlin, tore into her and her son, Lenny, immediately after the boy's Jacko act on Thursday night, claiming the crotch-clutching portions constituted "gross misconduct," the Winona Daily News reported.
"[Lenny] is heartbroken," Boberg wrote on her Facebook page. "He worked so hard on this and then to have your principal scream at you immediately after."
"And as of now we are told, he's suspended indefinitely and he won't even meet with us until Monday," she wrote.
Boberg told the newspaper she wasn't sure why Bowlin ripped her boy's Gloved One gag.
The boy has performed the routine at the fundraising event for the past two years, and school officials signed off on the act during a rehearsal on Tuesday, Boberg said.
In a grainy video of the performance posted on YouTube, the crowd of grade-schoolers mostly giggle and cheer as Lenny, wearing Jackson's signature single glove, nails the King of Pop's routine from the 1983 video.
Bowlin sent an email apology to school faculty, staff and families for "one act that was clearly inappropriate."
He told the Winona Daily News that the suspension was an internal issue and plans to meet with the family on Monday.
In posts on her Facebook wall, family friends slammed the principal for going too far.
“Poor guy... You should be very proud of him, he didn't do anything wrong,” one friend wrote.
"Someone needs to moonwalk all over the principals face!!!" another supporter said.
definitely not appropriate behavior for a 9-year old
The mom is the pervert here not the nine year-old.
Uh, I don’t know. Yes, everyone knows it’s copying, but honestly Jacko’s stuff was a bit risque or at least potty.
Although, I admit, I don’t know if I’d “suspend indefinitely”. It was after all a performance that was known - and it’s mimicry. More like detention or maybe a 1-day suspension.
“The STUPID is strong with this one”.
They actually only gave him a 1 day suspension and the principal who over-reacted apologized to the kid.
Well, we don’t know if she would’ve approved a sleepover with Jacko.
Officials should never sign off on young children acting like morally corrupt adults-—it is really stupid to allow the depraved pop culture to invade the school to that extent. They should promote moral behavior and moral acts.
They were promoting children masturbating on stage-—it is really sick but is expected in the homoerotica promoted 24/7 to people. The mom saw nothing wrong with a boy grabbing himself in public while making overt sexual moves-—our culture is so morally corrupt and the mom is sick....no sense of Right and Wrong.
The boy has no sense of modesty or Right and Wrong. Less than 5 year olds did 50 years ago.....what a shame that the innocence of children is being destroyed.
Hope that kid doesn’t play baseball, they’re always grabbing their crotch.
Mom should have cut the crotch grab from the 9 year olds dance.
Even though there’s not a crime here, mom needs a talking to.
Sounds like everyone is at fault.
The school for not reviewing the routine and allowing it in the two years previous.
The mom for not reviewing the routine.
The kid for his poor choice.
Michael Jackson for being a poor role model even posthumously.
If the fundraising event where the kid performed this same routine the prior two years was a school event, then the suspension is really unwarranted, unless something was communicated after the last event.
I would have cold cocked that principal immediately if he had pulled that on me and my 9 year old. The child is scarred for life now over that and the real issue is with the principal and the staff that approved the routine. That principal should never be around children again.
The article says it was also passed on by others who viewed the acts in advance.
The school should screen the acts beforehand. That’s what they do at my kids’ school. I don’t know if the school handled it (no pun intended) properly, but it bothers me that the mom doesn’t see the inappropriateness of the act. Just like the mom of the teen girl with the risque yearbook photo. These parents have no boundaries about what their kids can do in public. Not even the point that kids don’t need to be sexualized at young ages, but don’t they understand that someone watching these kids acting in a sexual manner might not be normal and get other ideas about that cute crotch grabbing? Attacks don’t just happen to girls. Well I’m glad she’s getting all the “you go girls” from her facebook friends just like the yearbook mom. Too bad not one of her friends sees it as wrong or if they do has the guts to say so.
The mom is a disgrace
Is anyone surprised about the terrible decisions being rendered by school administrators. The colleges of education in most if not all of our universities are the intellectual garbage dumpsters of said universities. If you can’t make it in any other major, then change to education. This is so sad but so true. Now, I know that there are a few exceptions that result in excellent teachers and administrators. However these are the exceptions and not
the rule.
By the way, journalism is a photo finish to education.
So was Michael Jackson.
What’s next? Rape tag?
oh wait that’s also from Minnesota.
Hadn’t heard about that one. Did that actually happen? I’m just glad that some schools like the one in Durango, CO with the yearbook pic and this one are recognizing something as too sexual for children. Then you’ve got the other end of the spectrum where the 6 year old playing tag at school is labeled with sexual assault because he touched another kid’s upper leg/groin.
The "apology" was to the school faculty, staff, and other families, NOT to the perv and her 9 year old son.
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