Yesterday The Daily Free Press was correct to condemn the South Hadley teenagers who were charged with bullying Phoebe Prince into committing suicide. But what wasn’t mentioned was the failure of the teachers and staff to address the issue before it spiraled out of control.
On the day of her suicide, Phoebe Prince was reportedly bullied in the library, right in front of a teacher, and then bullied in the hallways. When she was walking home she was hit with a full soda can. She hanged herself in a closet that afternoon.
This was the culmination of three months of abuse.
The student body knew what was happening. District Attorney Elizabeth Scheibel, who handed down felony charges to nine students on Monday, said the harassment of Prince was “common knowledge.”
But no adults were charged or implicated in the case.
On Tuesday, names of the students over 16 and what they were charged with were listed in publications across the country. Sean Mulveyhill, 17, statutory rape, Austin Renaud, 18, statutory rape, Kayla Narey, 17, violation of civil rights, criminal harassment, Ashley Longe, 16, violation of civil rights with bodily injury resulting, Flannery Mullins, 16 and Sharon Chanon Velazquez, 16, violation of civil rights and stalking.
These six students were charged as adults. Three others were charged as juveniles as of press time.
I list their names here as other publications have because I don’t condone their actions. However, these kids are being put on a very public perp walk for something that could have been prevented.
Where were the interventions?
Where were the suspensions?
Where were the teachers?
Where were the administrators?
For three months Prince, an Irish immigrant, was publicly abused in an environment dedicated to growth. Her mother had talked with school officials twice about the problem and nothing was done. Four students and two teachers stood up for Phoebe and still nothing was done.
As a young student navigating the cliques, minor relationships and peer pressure of high school, it’s easy to get lost. Prince couldn’t have known what was in store for her when she fell for the star football player, Mulveyhill. She was a freshman, she was the new kid and she wanted to be accepted. But high school jealousy is a vicious beast.
The girls who had long admired Mulveyhill responded. They were the ingrained girls of South Hadley High. They had grown up together, knew the school and were not comfortable with the new girl, Prince, in their territory. Without adults stepping in, their viciousness only spiraled out of control.
Adults are in schools to teach kids lessons. They teach history, math, science and English. But, they’re also responsible for teaching morals. They’re responsible for teaching civilized behavior and the limits of free speech. They should understand the dynamics of their classroom as well as the dynamics of the hallway. Only they can intervene forcefully between students.
Only the adults have the ability to punish.
So as these adult punishments get handed down to the students of South Hadley High School, the public is left to wonder just what went on in those hallways.
There is no question that the death of Phoebe Prince was caused by her peers. But the question that still remains is what were the adults doing in that high school? As the names of the naïve nine spread across the country, the names I want to know are the teachers that failed to do their duty. I want to know the names of the administrators that failed to give out punishments. South Hadley High School, you should be ashamed.
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