School to pay $4.5M settlement to bullied Jewish students

[Jazzy]

A federal judge approved a $4.5 million settlement between an upstate New York school district and five Jewish students who say they endured years of abuse by classmates who made Holocaust jokes toward them and drew swastikas in hallways and lockers.

One of the five current and former students who testified at a hearing Thursday when the settlement was approved held back sobs as she described becoming suicidal after repeated acts of anti-Semitic bullying.

"I will never be able to get those years of my childhood back," the 17-year-old said, according to the New York Times. "I used to be an outgoing kid who wasn't afraid to talk to people and make new friends."

The lawsuit accused Pine Bush Central School District officials of failing to take action to protect the students from anti-Semitic bullying for years. The students said they were subjected to racial epithets, Nazi salutes and other forms of intimidation.

As part of the settlement, the district must conduct mandatory training for faculty and staff on recognizing anti-Semitic harassment. It must also implement an anti-bullying curriculum.

The students will receive two-thirds of the payout. The rest will go to attorney's fees.

Source

Your thoughts on the $4.5 million settlement?

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

I was bullied in school growing up, where's my 4.5 million dollars?

 

[Smiley]

This... does not compute.

Last time I checked, bullying was perfectly acceptable. Oh, you got bullied? It's your own fault. Serves you right for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

This... does not compute.

Last time I checked, bullying was perfectly acceptable. Oh, you got bullied? It's your own fault. Serves you right for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

How is it acceptable? Bullies should be dealt with and punished accordingly.

...also the kids who got bullied shouldn't be turned into millionaires either. If they did that for everyone who ever got bullied, 80% of us would be millionaires right now.

 

[Smiley]

How is it acceptable? Bullies should be dealt with and punished accordingly.

I agree, but that's not how the real world works, from what I've seen.

 

[Sinon]

I was bullied in school growing up, where's my 4.5 million dollars?

That depends, are you Jewish?

*shot*

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

That depends, are you Jewish?

*shot*

Nope, lol.

 

[DrLeftover]

Let me guess, if any student in that district ever wrote KKK on the bathroom wall, they'd been instantly expelled.

what'cha think?