DENVER — The FOX31 Denver Problem Solvers are getting inundated with emails and phone calls from parents who say their children are getting beaten up — just so the “bully” can post it on Facebook.
Some parents sent video clips, illustrating what they say is a growing problem at Denver metro-area schools.
Cherish Ruggier is one of the alleged victims.
“I was scared, It happened so quick and nobody wanted to help me,” she said.
The West High School student was “ambushed” after school by another teenage girl who had been threatening her for months. One of her friends videotaped the fight and posted it on social media soon after.
The recorded beating was then liked, shared and commented on by dozens of Cherish’s peers.
“It’s just sad when they are your friend for a minute and the next, they are not. And they say hurtful things and do hurtful things,” Cherish said.
Cherish’s mother, Tennile Chavez, contacted the Problem Solvers for help after she claims the school refused to punish the “bully,” in part because she attended a different school and the fight was off school grounds.
“Someday I’m going to get the call that someone did shoot your daughter or beat her up so bad, and it will be too late,” Chavez said.
Several video clips from concerned parents were obtained, including disturbing video of a young girl being hit repeatedly in the face inside a Denver Public School’s bathroom stall.
Licensed professional counselor Sean Boyd said the people who are posting fights on social media are most likely seeking attention.
“It has to do with claiming a sense of power, control and status,” Boyd said. “This doesn’t stop at the end of the school day. This comes home with you. It’s 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
Boyd said the impact on the victim can be devastating.
“Colorado still ranks in the top 10, year after year, for having the highest suicide rate and this is one of those variables that absolutely contributes to that,” he said.
Eldridge Greer with Denver Public Schools said he understands the seriousness of the problem, but when the district is presented with social media video showing two kids fighting, it can be difficult to determine whether it is a bullying incident and who is to blame.
“If they have a video of a fight, while it looks like this person threw the first punch, but the other person threw the second punch, so I’m going to discipline differently. It’s more likely there was a fight and we are going to have to give a consequence to both kids,” Greer said.
That’s why, Greer said, parents should not advise their children to fight back. Instead, he said, encourage children to come forward and talk to a trusted adult before the situation escalates.
“We want to be able to address things very early on. It’s much more effective than trying to address something after the fact,” Greer said.
Greer also said there are a lot resources available to help students and the parents, including counseling and mediation services.
“We have a very strong family and community engagement office that really helps parents navigate what kinds of concerns are still coming up and can serve as that bridge between the parent, the student and the school to get to common outcomes that are beneficial,” Greer said.
Greer encourages students to report bullying incidents anonymously, through websites such as Safe2Tell.org and StopBullying.gov.
The Colorado Department of Education is also making grant money available in June for school districts that want to beef up bullying prevention programs.