Can't keep quiet

I can't keep quiet on this one: Teen bullying: Tormented boy's short life ends in suicide

According to a spokesperson from his high school, "bullying is obviously not tolerated at [the high school]." OK, fine. Of course it's not. Then she goes on to say, "I don't think we're naive enough to think that bullying behavior doesn't exist."


Except. Except. EXCEPT, then she's quoted as saying, "we don't believe that bullying was an issue while Iain was attending LT. Counselors and a host of other support personnel worked routinely to make his experience at LT a positive one."


Oh. My. God. Are you really that ignorant? That unaware? Do you really believe, for a moment, that this kid wasn't picked on? In the world of CYA, you're better off saying "no comment" than saying something as clearly wrong as that. This kid was a target, and if you believe the news story's accuracy, all of their well-meaning "not tolerated" BS failed.


I'm not blaming the school -- suicide is a complex issue, and it sounds like this is a case where a lot of things went wrong. But I agree with his mother: "A lot of people don't want to talk about mental health or bullying because it's a difficult thing to talk about, but we need to talk about it," she said. "It shouldn't be a stigma."

Our schools are the front line to stopping this behavior. So don't give me a line about intolerance and "doesn't happen here" -- we're talking about high school, get your head out of your ass. This is the worst kind of silence: the one that denies and lets the bullying continue. And even though this young man is dead, it will continue.