The Kids ARE alright, it’s MCPS that’s NOT alright.

By A.J. Campbell.

After a week where students who have been victimized on MCPS campuses have come forward to tell their truth on Instagram about abuse, harassment, predation, and rape, we need a moment to reflect on how we are going to approach and honor the victims.  I choose to do so by standing up, reading their stories, and hearing their pain.

Others have chosen to deride and dismiss the students' statements by standing up for predators whom one person alleges might be falsely accused.  Our students are screaming out in pain because no one is listening. Skeptics needs to sit down and listen.

There are not two sides to this.

Some students have been forced to take down their posts because of harassment, threats of legal action, and intimidation.  We have to stand with the students who are moving their stories from one Instagram account to another.  Trying to keep their stories alive.

Supporting victims is not denying accused predators of their rights, it just means they can use their First Amendment rights to speak about their experience.  An accused right to due process is the role and the duty of the state and has nothing to do with a victim speaking out.

MCPS has to take ownership of any action that they have taken or not taken that has caused these students to believe that coming forward might result in further trauma, or that they would not be taken seriously, or that the accused would just be given a few days off.  Sometimes victims are further victimized on social media for reporting. This is hard work and uncomfortable conversation.  MCPS must own their role in all of this.

As a reminder, some of the incidents have been reported to MCPS already. I don’t recall a single statement where MCPS says that all of these incidents are new. I will happily apologize if I am wrong.  But some of the student statements on social media do say that students have reported.  This student says, she reported, and MCPS did nothing.

One student talks about a freshman boy who sold nude photos to the boys on the basketball team.  At a time when porn is easily accessible, this transaction among young men was about power and predation.

We blame victims for speaking out while forgetting that the perpetrators have had access to the internet, to spread child pornography, and misogyny for some time now.  

Here is another story from a survivor who did report and a teacher did nothing but bemoan that Boys will Be Boys.  Read the room, this thinking should be left in a classroom that still had inkwells. 

MCPS has had massive problems with predator teachers preying their students.  Every time it happens MCPS says that they had no idea, but that only worked the first 20 times or so.  Will MCPS post on this page that they want to find out who this creepy AF teacher is so they can show them the door?

Some people, including candidates for the Montgomery County School Board, choose to take an All Lives Matter approach by standing with the predators and calling for due process, I refuse to do so.  The accused will always have their due process rights, MCPS assures that they do.  I don't need to advocate on their behalf.  

We need to have strong leadership at MCPS who puts the victims first.  

We can see by some of the comments directed towards Principal Renay Johnson, that she has, through her actions or inactions, fomented animosity by current and former students, who are organizing against her, forming action committees, circulating petitions.  Leadership matters on the school board or with the principals. 

Here are just some of the posts that have accused Principal Johnson at Montgomery Blair High School of not taking action.  These kids knew there was a problem:

We can't defend or decry due process and pretend these predators don't get their full measure of rights while our students who are victims don't get any protection.  Many are forced to go back to school after the predators get a stern talking to and a few days off of school.  I am sorry but this is not a two-sided argument.  I will never align myself with the teen Harvey Weinsteins of the world.  

I stand with the victims.