I was siting in my office trying to wind down from a day of catching up with discipline referrals... you know, those kids who just "forgot" to serve that Saturday School or After School Detention when suddenly On Campus Suspension (OCS) Warrior-Queen appears in my door and asks the question, "Do I look like a F--king Hoe"? After I managed some composure and wiped the tears that were now running down my cheeks I asked the question... "Why, did someone call you a f--king hoe"? We laughed for a couple more minutes and then she replied, "Yes." She had caught a kid lighting up a cigarette outside the OCS room and she had taken it from him, attempted to escort him to the office when he refused to comply he called her the this inappropriate name. Now this lady is no feather weight in dealing with the "worst of the universe" and she found this quite amusing. She quickly remarked that her husband didn't even use these words in the heat of passion... which was too much information for my taste, but facilitated more laugher and a very sharp pain in my side.
RESPECT, RESPECT, RESPECT!!! Where did we lose it? Today during our FULL SARB (truancy meeting) a young man told me (as well as seven other adults from different community agencies) that he did not like me and he didn't have to respect anyone that he felt didn't respect him. When he left the room, once again we had a good laugh. I am sure I will lose sleep tonight over the matter. The Deputy District Attorney had an interesting take on the comment. He shared that frequently he deals with gang members in court and he has observed that they equate "respect" with "fear." So in essence this young man was telling me that he did not like me because I didn't "fear" him... in that context I consider it quite the compliment.
What amazed me the most is the fact that I was forced into the role of the parent with this child, while the parents sat there smiling oblivious to the gross disrespect their son was showing a school official. I gave him quite the tongue lashing for being so rude and disrespectful. When did I become the parent of 3,000 teenagers... is this why my hair is going white and my stomach stays in knots?
Mamas teach your children to respect their elders... please! Today's story was indeed funny, but much too often we are forced to suspend students for cursing teachers or school staff. It is ridiculous that students lose instructional time because they have not be taught that they are children and they should "respect those who are take charge" of them.
