Principal Slut Shames Pregnant 8th Grader

[Alecto]

Shantelle Hicks, a 15-year-old from Gallup, N.M. claims she was first forced to leave the Wingate Elementary School and then publicly outed as being pregnant in front of all students and employees, KOB-TV reports.

Wingate Elementary is a public boarding school for Native American children from kindergarten through 8th grade.

Now, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, Hicks has filed suit against the school, claiming they violated her constitutional rights. According to the complaint, school officials kicked Hicks out of school after learning of her pregnancy, but readmitted her four days later when the ACLU of New Mexico informed the school that it's illegal to deny a student access to education for being pregnant.

But two weeks after her readmission, a school counselor and the director of the middle school forced the teen to stand before the middle school assembly and announced her condition -- allegedly before anyone but her sister knew.

“It was so embarrassing to have all the other kids staring at me as I walked into the gymnasium,†said Hicks, according to KOB. “I didn’t want the whole school to know I was pregnant because it’s not their business, and it wasn’t right for my teachers to single me out.â€

According to the suit, school officials informed Hicks that she would be a "bad example" to other students, and requested she attend another school, a Washington Post local report states.

“It is outrageous that educators would subject a young woman in their care to such cruelty,†ACLU of New Mexico cooperating attorney Barry Klopfer said, according to the Indian Country Today Community Network.

The girl's mother, Vicky Hicks, says her daughter's public humiliation was wrong.

"[students] shouldn't be treated differently because they're pregnant," Hicks told KOAT-TV.

The lawsuit was filed on March 6th and seeks punitive damages and declaratory relief for violation of constitutional rights to equal protection and of the Title IX prohibition against sex and pregnancy discrimination in education.

There are no words for the anger I feel on behalf of this girl.

[Beeks]

:shock: I'm sputtering.

[Alecto]

Maybe some of our medical folks will know - isn't this a HIPPA violation?

[Witsec7]

Indian boarding schools are hell holes. I think I have my letter writing campaign for next week.

More on the schools.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... d=16516865

"Language, religion, family structure, economics, the way you make a living, the way you express emotion, everything," says Lomawaima.

Lomawaima says from the start, the government's objective was to "erase and replace" Indian culture, part of a larger strategy to conquer Indians.

[Boltingmadonna]

This is particularly wrong and awful because if a girl is pregnant at 15, she was probably raped. The age of consent in New Mexico is 16. It would only not be rape if the person who got her pregnant was less than four years older than she was. From the New Mexico statute:

"F. Criminal sexual penetration in the fourth degree consists of all criminal sexual penetration:

(1) not defined in Subsections C through E of this section perpetrated on a child thirteen to sixteen years of age when the perpetrator is at least eighteen years of age and is at least four years older than the child and not the spouse of that child;

It would still be wrong to treat her this way if she had been a fully consenting participant, of course. It just makes it even more hateful and mean that she was, in fact, a minor and may not have fully consented to being made pregnant at that age. Way to be pro-life, douchebags.

[Dinaberries]

Indian boarding schools are hell holes. I think I have my letter writing campaign for next week.

More on the schools.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... d=16516865

I had no idea that these schools were still operating that way.

This story is so heartbreaking. I can't think of anything meaningful to say to this. Thinking about what this poor girl is going through brings tears to my eyes.

[Visionoyahweh]

Asshole. How could denying her an education POSSIBLY be good for a 15 year old?

[Mama Mia]

WTF.. this sounds like something from 100 years ago. I hope that hideous jerk is fired.

I had no idea they still ran these boarding schools - horrible.

I think jumping to the conclusion the girl was raped is silly, many young teens have sex quite willingly. Obviously she should have used protection - but I'm getting the idea this school wasn't big on sex ed. And no matter how she got pregnant how dare that jerk humiliate her that way ? What a horrible example he is setting !

[Witsec7]

There have been a few scandals recently about abusive Jesuit priests at some indian schools, sexual abuses by nuns on Yankton Sioux and also on the Coleville res too. Candadian schools haven't been immune.

We cannot stop being outraged.

[DarkAnts]

Yet another reason for me to not like Gallup, NM. The first reason is having my very first car accident at the beginning of US Rout 666. It was a drunk driver who hit me at high speeds and then drove off.

[NurseNell]

Maybe some of our medical folks will know - isn't this a HIPPA violation?

It would be a HIPAA violation if a medical clinic or health provider revealed the pregnancy to someone not authorized to have the info. HIPAA applies to school nurses, so if it was a school nurse who revealed the pregnancy then yes but it isn't clear how the school personnel knew she was pregnant.

It is so hard to believe that in 2012 something like this could happen. There is absolutely no reason what-so-ever for the principal doing this. This girl needs support, not shaming. Every public high school in my city has pregnant students and sometimes in the middle schools also. The high schools have day care and nurseries for the babies/toddlers of the students.

I also didn't know there were still Indian boarding schools.

[BravaAmica]

Do a student one year under legal age of consent is pregnant and her school's solution is to shame her? What a bunch of assholes.

[QuoVadis]

This is particularly wrong and awful because if a girl is pregnant at 15, she was probably raped. The age of consent in New Mexico is 16. It would only not be rape if the person who got her pregnant was less than four years older than she was. From the New Mexico statute:

It would still be wrong to treat her this way if she had been a fully consenting participant, of course. It just makes it even more hateful and mean that she was, in fact, a minor and may not have fully consented to being made pregnant at that age. Way to be pro-life, douchebags.

I agree that there is a possibility that she was a consensual victim of statutory rape. And where is the father in all this? If he was at the school, why wasn't he punished as well? It's such a sad story all around.

I also have to admit my confusion as to this being the fault of fundies? The boarding school is a federal, public school not private, Christian, or Jesuit. I didn't read any news reports where the middle school director (Christine Edsitty-Beach) or the counselor (Sadie Martinez) were being indicted for any particular "religious" views, though, of course, I didn't read everything. (I believe the ACLU said something about "morality out of the Scarlet Letter".)

Incidentally, if any of you want to contact the school, I believe this is their website and contact info: www.wes.bie.edu/Departments/ContactUs/ContactUs.html

[Witsec7]

I also have to admit my confusion as to this being the fault of fundies?

Quo Vadis you'll need to cut and paste to show where fundies were being blamed. The topic is Slut Shaming of a child.

[QuoVadis]

Quo Vadis you'll need to cut and paste to show where fundies were being blamed. The topic is Slut Shaming of a child.

It was in the previous quote I just quoted. "Way to be pro-life..." ?

[Witsec7]

Some pro-life douchebags are fundies, some aren't QV. The OP didn't identify them as fundy pro-life douchebags.

[QuoVadis]

True; douchebags come in all varieties.. But I still, then, fail to see where the pro-life bit came it or why it was mentioned in this context when anything about the pro-life stance or not of the school or the director is not (to me) known. Which is why I asked.

[Witsec7]

True; douchebags come in all varieties.. But I still, then, fail to see where the pro-life bit came it or why it was mentioned in this context when anything about the pro-life stance or not of the school or the director is not (to me) known. Which is why I asked.

Well I merely made the distinction between fundy pro-life douche bag and pro-life douche bag.

[DarkAnts]

It would be a HIPAA violation if a medical clinic or health provider revealed the pregnancy to someone not authorized to have the info. HIPAA applies to school nurses, so if it was a school nurse who revealed the pregnancy then yes but it isn't clear how the school personnel knew she was pregnant.

It is so hard to believe that in 2012 something like this could happen. There is absolutely no reason what-so-ever for the principal doing this. This girl needs support, not shaming. Every public high school in my city has pregnant students and sometimes in the middle schools also. The high schools have day care and nurseries for the babies/toddlers of the students.

I also didn't know there were still Indian boarding schools.

There are still a few out there. Gallup is such a sad place to visit. There is ramped poverty, abuse, and self medication. The schools are suppose to be a safe place for the children. Many of the schools are still government sponsored. Families are not required to send their children there. The schools now try to connect the students to their culture. Many of the schools even offer native language classes. The schools are suppose to give the children rasped from a horrible home life. The schools also offer group and individual counseling to help students deal with the emotional stresses in their lives.

The principle of this school is doing so much damage. I skipped over responding to this post for a little while because it makes me so mad. This school is suppose to be a safe place for the students!! She may have acted out in anger (because she wants a better life for the students), but, its no excuse for her actions. I hope she is fired and the student is given the consoling that she needs.

[Guest Anonymous]

Poor girl! She didn't deserve that! That principal ought to be ashamed of himself. Maybe somebody could find something "shameful" about him and shame him in public.

[Maude]

Disgusting. I hope she wins her suit. :evil:

[Bella99]

As if being PG at 15 was't enough of a problem, now she gets the Hester Prynne treatment. I will say fear of shame (internally generated) kept me from making some poor sexual choices until I was old enough to protect myself without my parent's knowledge. But public humiliation is the last thing this kid needed.

[skrmom]

Poor child. She does not deserve to be treated so unkindly.

[Bella99]

15 years old and in the 8th grade?

If she had a late birthday, her folks could have held her back a year, or had no choice due to cut off dates. My daughter was born Sept. 2nd so she turned 6 right after starting kindergarten.

[AudreyE]

That is disgusting.