Bullying
Unfortunately, bullying is a very common issue in school. In some cases,
Brianna Cooper
Brianna Cooper is an 11-year-old girl who was taught to not stand by and watch someone being bullied. Her parents always taught her to step in if she saw bullying happening. Her mother always told her that when you take the power away from the bully, they become weak. When she saw students in her classroom being bullied, she decided to step in.
An Unexpected Bully
In Brianna’s class, it wasn’t the students who did the bullying. It was the teacher. Brianna’s teacher was known for picking on the students in the class based on their size and their appearance. While this is completely appalling, it was a regular occurrence in the classroom. Brianna thought about what she was taught about not being a bystander, so she took out her cellphone and caught her teacher on tape.
Caught On Tape
What Brianna caught on tape was horrible. The teacher could be heard saying, “Biggest kid in 5th grade and you’re acting like the smallest one. I wonder what your Mom looks like.” As if that weren’t bad enough, she went as far as to threaten a teacher. She could be heard on the recording saying, “Don’t let the size fool you. I will drop you.” What kind of teacher would say these things to her students? Teachers are supposed to care for their students and encourage them. Teachers should never belittle students or threaten them, but that is exactly what this teacher was doing. If it weren’t for Brianna deciding to step in and do something, her teacher would have been able to get away with this horrendous behavior year after year.
Going To Another Teacher
When Brianna got her teacher on tape threatening and belittling other students, she knew that she had to tell someone. The teacher that she had the year before had always been kind and supportive, so she decided to bring her recording to her. The teacher couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and she took the recording to the principal. Brianna’s bully teacher was fired, and Brianna thought that she did the right thing. It wasn’t until she was called to the principal’s office the next day that she realized that maybe she didn’t do the right thing.
Suspension
When Brianna got to the principal’s office, she thought that she was going to be praised for not allowing the teacher to get away with bullying other children. Instead, the principal told her that he was calling her mother because she was being suspended for five days. This 11-year-old uses phone to catch
Why?
According to the principal, Brianna was being suspended because she broke the law. According to the school board, it is illegal in the state of Florida to tape someone without their knowledge.
Cassie Cooper
When Brianna’s mother, Cassie, heard about her daughter’s suspension, she was furious. She told the school that her daughter didn’t know that it was illegal to record a person without their permission. Cassie argued that what the teacher was doing was illegal and Brianna had no way of proving it without recording the bullying when it happened. Cassie said that Brianna was sure that nobody would believe her when the teacher denied her claims.
The News
When Channel 5 News heard about Brianna’s suspension, they decided to interview the family. When the story ran, Brianna’s punishment didn’t sit well with viewers. People couldn’t believe that when a young girl takes a stand against a bullying teacher to protect her classmates, she got suspended. Nothing about this story was sitting well.
Viral Video
When Channel 5 News posted the story on their Facebook page, Brianna’s story quickly went viral. People from all over the country were shocked that she would be suspended for stopping a bullying teacher. The school district was embarrassed, but Brianna was able to hold her head high, knowing that she did the right thing. She may have a suspension on her record, but she knew that she did the right thing. After her teacher was fired, she was replaced with another kind, caring teacher. Thanks to Brianna, her classmates will no longer be subjected to bullying from their teacher. At the end of the day, Brianna says that it was more than worth the suspension. She says that you cannot put a price on feeling safe in the classroom.
