Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

'Happy kid' kills himself over bullying at two NYC schools
MSNBC ^ | 6/3/12 | NBC New York

Posted on 06/03/2012 9:01:25 PM PDT by Nachum

NEW YORK CITY -- A 12-year-old boy harassed by school bullies about his intelligence, his height and his deceased father killed himself in the New York City apartment he shared with his mother, according to relatives and those who knew him, NBCNewYork.com reported.

"I want to remember him as a happy kid," his anguished sister told NBC 4 New York on Thursday.

Joel Morales, of East Harlem, moved to a different school after enduring incessant taunting for months, but the bullying persisted, the fifth-grader’s family said. Advertise | AdChoices

Kids chased Morales, threw sticks and pipes at him and teased him for his smarts and his 4-foot-9 stature, his family said.

(Excerpt) Read more at usnews.msnbc.msn.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; US: New York
KEYWORDS: arth; eastharlem; happy; himself; joelmorales; key; kid; kills; newyork; newyorkcity; words
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-93 next last
To: SaraJohnson
Some teachers don’t act loving towards kids and base rewards and punishments on consistent social behavioral expectations for everyone all at the same time.

I remember that when I was in school the teachers took their ques from the kids. If a kid was popular the teachers gave them special consideration. If a kid wasn't, they were ignored or worse. The teachers never intervened when kids were nasty to each other. I couldn't figure out why the teachers didn't act like impartial adults. Now I think it is because many of them were still back in school in their emotions. It's like they became teachers so that they could remain throughout their lives with the mentality of a student.

41 posted on 06/03/2012 11:18:27 PM PDT by Bellflower (The LORD is Holy, separated from all sin, perfect, righteous, high and lifted up.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: Secret Agent Man

Meh.
Everybody gets picked on and no one stood up for me.

You gotta stand up for yourself.
I’m sorry this kid killed himself.
One of my nephews did this hanging shit but did not die.

I’m like what’s yer problem Jr?


42 posted on 06/03/2012 11:33:03 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 40 | View Replies]

To: ottbmare
I was under a 100 pds. but learned to fight back. When some bullies picked on my sister I started to call out their physically less then perfect attributes. I said I don't know what you are talking about with those greasy beady eyes of yours, have you looked in a mirror lately? Another kid had a mole on his face and I called him moldy. Another had really light eyebrows you could hardly see and I asked him what happened to his eyebrows and called him Mr. no eyebrows. Taunting them worked. They stopped bothering my sister because teenage boys don't want their physical faults pointed out in front of their friends.
43 posted on 06/03/2012 11:33:18 PM PDT by Bellflower (The LORD is Holy, separated from all sin, perfect, righteous, high and lifted up.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 28 | View Replies]

To: mylife

Back when you and I went to school they wouldn’t crucify the kid who was only defending himself. Today they do. At least adults would say it’s only reasonable back in our day, now he would get punished by the school too.

Not just as easy as saying “meh”. Sorry.


44 posted on 06/03/2012 11:43:07 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man (I can neither confirm or deny that; even if I could, I couldn't - it's classified.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: Secret Agent Man

Well theres the rub imho.
Stop coddling kids and let them fight


45 posted on 06/03/2012 11:49:26 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Secret Agent Man

My Pop would say “you guys wanna fight? Here’s some boxing gloves, knock yourself out”


46 posted on 06/03/2012 11:51:19 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Secret Agent Man

My Pop would say “you guys wanna fight? Here’s some boxing gloves, knock yourselves out”


47 posted on 06/03/2012 11:51:55 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Secret Agent Man

Also you are correct that the schools are bigger bullies than the kids they monitor.
They sap the life out of kids and dont let them be kids.


48 posted on 06/03/2012 11:55:33 PM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: Bellflower

I tell ya what, I was a narrah skinny kid.
One of the bestest days I ever had was when I cleaned the taunting sports captains clock and the entire cafeteria cheered.

I was way out of line and he was just like what? Then I cleaned his clock.

I didnt get suspended or nuthin

He had it coming.


49 posted on 06/04/2012 12:04:48 AM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 43 | View Replies]

To: Nachum

Where were the parents of the bullies? Ok, teasing i can understand — all kids do that —but throwing sticks and pipes is way over the line. those bullies don’t seem to know the difference between right and wrong.


50 posted on 06/04/2012 12:06:03 AM PDT by Cronos (**Marriage is about commitment, cohabitation is about convenience.**)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Nachum

Chancy Gardner sends a message to Raphael

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdQUAsZaCoI


51 posted on 06/04/2012 12:21:11 AM PDT by mylife (The Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Nachum
A lot of the responses here believe that we're back in the 1950's or 60's, where if you did fight back and beat the tar out of the bullies, they go away with their tails between their legs.

That is not the way it is in this day and age, and especially in a place such as where this kid was going to school.

You get the upper hand in any way, you'll get these particular bullies coming back with any assortment of weapons and/or more of their homeboys to "get even".

The solution -- get the kid out of that school and away from that environment as quickly as possible.

52 posted on 06/04/2012 12:35:25 AM PDT by PallMal
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dr_lew

His father was dead.


53 posted on 06/04/2012 12:43:20 AM PDT by 9YearLurker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies]

To: ottbmare; okie01
I agree with ott -- when I was that age, my dad passed away, so I was pretty lost and really didn't know how to fight. The difference was that I was much taller than the average and I had taken to weight lifting to focus my mind off death. It helped for that, and inadvertently also ensured kids didn't bother to bully me, though if they tried I would have probably been a push-over --> in fact once away from school a bunch of kids did try it and I did get one in a choke-hold, but luckily an adult came along and broke it up, so no one ever knew I couldn't bring myself to hurt someone

It's easy to say "fight back", but sometimes the kids just don't know how.

54 posted on 06/04/2012 12:57:08 AM PDT by Cronos (**Marriage is about commitment, cohabitation is about convenience.**)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 37 | View Replies]

To: Sea Parrot

This usually does not, however, succeed in getting the bully ostracized, and especially with today’s socialist teachers can come back to hurt you worse than the bully.


55 posted on 06/04/2012 1:58:04 AM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Let me ABOs run loose Lou!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 39 | View Replies]

To: HiTech RedNeck
I call them "Practice Prisons" and do my students love it.

They see the same mentality that gets adults through incarceration and forced labor.

For most kids, school contains little of the joy of learning.

Isn't it ironic that we use socialist institutions to teach our children how to thrive in a capitalist society.

56 posted on 06/04/2012 4:11:17 AM PDT by Aevery_Freeman (Typed using <FONT STYLE=SARCASM> unless otherwise noted)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Nachum

This is what happens in a society whose government pays women to have babies; those babies grow up without parenting.


57 posted on 06/04/2012 4:29:18 AM PDT by liberalh8ter (If Barack has a memory like a steel trap, why can't he remember what the Constitution says?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: okie01
"Fight back!"

Yup. Went through the same at that age, as a Catholic school boy in a Protestant neighborhood. Every day they were waiting, as I stepped off the bus with my little book bag, and school uniform of bow tie, white shirt, saddle shoes, and pleated pants. Every day a foot chase, and a beat down...until my Dad (a former Golden Gloves boxer) taught me the manly art of self defense. A single afternoon's dust up stopped it all cold. I bloodied some noses, and broke some teeth. Got punished for it by Mother Superior, but was never bullied again. Ever.
58 posted on 06/04/2012 4:36:03 AM PDT by PowderMonkey (WILL WORK FOR AMMO)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Nachum
A 12-year-old boy harassed by school bullies about his intelligence, his height and his deceased father killed himself in the New York City apartment he shared with his mother

Life must have been pure hell for this poor kid. Sometimes they don't tell anyone about the bullying, perhaps because they're ashamed, and just skip classes or school altogether. Then the parent or guardian gets angry and punishes them further not knowing why they've not been going to school. They really need to talk to someone responsible about it.

59 posted on 06/04/2012 4:51:52 AM PDT by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Greysard

“Logically, the best solution would be to allow a child to take control of his life by giving him either the legal status of an adult or at least allowing him to make necessary decisions about his specific situation - with judge’s participation, perhaps. When none of that happens the kid, being neither protected nor wanted, sees no other option but to end his life.”

You label this nonsense ‘logic’. Wow. Your own apparent inability to see the pure sillyness in your ‘logic’ may be an indication of the trouble the Culture is in.


60 posted on 06/04/2012 4:56:47 AM PDT by TalBlack ( Evil doesn't have a day job.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-93 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson