Posted on 12/15/2009 6:50:21 AM PST by Alistair Stratford IV
Taunton second-grader suspended over drawing of Jesus
Father angered by forced psychological evaluation of boy, 8
By Gerry Tuoti, Staff Writer GateHouse News Service Posted Dec 14, 2009 @ 10:20 PM
Taunton
A Taunton father is outraged after his 8-year-old son was sent home from school and required to undergo a psychological evaluation after drawing a stick-figure picture of Jesus Christ on the cross.
The father said he got a call earlier this month from Maxham Elementary School informing him that his son, a second-grade student, had created a violent drawing. The image in question depicted a crucified Jesus with Xs covering his eyes to signify that he had died on the cross. The boy wrote his name above the cross.
As far as Im concerned, theyre violating his religion, the incredulous father said.
He requested that his name and his sons name be withheld from publication to protect the boy.
The student drew the picture shortly after taking a family trip to see the Christmas display at the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette, a Christian retreat site in Attleboro. He made the drawing in class after his teacher asked the children to sketch something that reminded them of Christmas, the father said.
I think what happened is that because he put Xs in the eyes of Jesus, the teacher was alarmed and they told the parents they thought it was violent, said Toni Saunders, an educational consultant with the Associated Advocacy Center.
Saunders is working with the boys parents after a mutual acquaintance referred them to her.
When I got that call, I was so appalled that I had to do something, Saunders said.
They werent looking at the fact that this is an 8-year-old child with special needs, she added. They made him leave school, and they recommended that a psychiatrist do an evaluation.
The school, in fact, required the evaluation before the boy could return, the father said.
Maxham School principal Rebecca Couet referred all questions on the matter to the superintendents office.
Superintendent Julie Hackett said district policy prevents her from discussing a confidential matter regarding a student.
Generally speaking, we have safety protocols in place, Hackett said. If a situation warrants it, we ask for outside safety evaluations if we have particular concerns about a childs safety. We followed all the protocols in our system.
Hackett refused to specifically discuss the students drawing or the schools reaction to it.
The father was flabbergasted when he learned his son had to undergo an evaluation.
When she told me he needed to be psychologically evaluated, I thought she was playing, he said.
The man said his son, who gets specialized reading and speech instruction at school, has never shown any tendency toward violence.
Hes never been suspended, he said. Hes 8 years old. They overreacted.
The boy made the drawing and was sent home from school on Dec. 2. He went for the psychological evaluation at his parents expense the next day and was cleared to return to school the following Monday after the psychological evaluation found nothing to indicate that he posed a threat to himself or others.
The boy, however, was traumatized by the incident, which made going back to school very difficult, the father said. School administrators have approved the fathers request to have the boy transferred to another elementary school in the district.
This is not the first time in recent years that a Taunton student has been sent home over a drawing. In June 2008, fifth-grade student Cullen Smithson was suspended from Mulcahey Middle School for a day after creating a stick figure drawing that appeared to depict him shooting his teacher and a classmate.
The Mulcahey teacher also contacted the police to take out charges in the 2008 incident.
gtuoti@tauntongazette.com
psych evaluation for thinking Christ has something to do with Christmas?
oh boy.
Soviet tactics?
From another thread...
The Christmas part of the program...
From the FoxNews article...
Indiana School Removes ‘Allah’ From Holiday Show After Protests
But when it came time to perform the Christian part of Christmas, children were assigned to say:
I didnt know there was a little boy at the manger. What child is this?
Im not sure if there was a little boy or not.
Then why did you paint one on your nativity window?
I just thought if there was a little boy, Id like to know exactly what he (sic) say.
Read more: http://www.foxnewsradio.com/2009/12/14/public-schoo-kids-singing-to-allah/#ixzz0ZiZlXBhV
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2407561/posts?page=12#12
Boston Herald just picked up the story. Picture of the drawing at link: http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1219085
Hard to draw a picture of Christ on the cross without showing violence. Ummm...it WAS violent.
Here is a suggested punishment that could be rendered to the child by the school principle....Off With His Head!
Much more fitting to the current belief systems of the annointed.
It irritates the crap out of me when people expect us to know which state or even country this is in.
They can't play hangman anymore. Now when you lose the little stick figure has to go into a hearing with a panel of psychologists who then release him back onto the streets after a stern warning.
Seems the Tea Party may have a new symbol.
“It irritates the crap out of me when people expect us to know which state or even country this is in.”
Illiteracy is an even bigger problem these days ;-)
Incredible
Yes
One wonders why home schooling is becoming more and more popular.
We sang Christmas Hymns along with the Santa Claus stuff.
We had presentations about the history of Silent Night, Holy Night. (I can still hear the 1st graders sliding up to the second syllable of “peace” at the Christmas assembly in the school auditorium)
We learned about the pagan tradition of Christmas trees and Yule logs. We sang “O Tannenbaum”.
We studied about Hanukkah with its menorah.
I don’t remember doing Passover, the Crucifixion and Resurrection, but we were out of school for a week and it was called Easter vacation.
Raised Catholic, we had Crucifixes with “Dead Jesus” around us pretty much everywhere, but I don’t recall seeing them at school.
We played “cowboys and Indians” and the Indians got massacred.
We played army and killed the Japs and the Krauts.
We played cops and robbers, both old west and modern, and the criminals were slaughtered.
We wrestled constantly, almost daily. Lots of bloody noses.
Golly Wally, no wonder I’m so racist, homophobic, nationalistic, and every other term the liberal label makers want to hang on Americans.
I grew up in Newton. Nothing about Massachusetts would surprise me.
I wonder how long this would continue if there were a few episodes of Theo van Gogh on some of these antichristians. Let them keep pushing and eventually they will get their backlash and it won’t be pretty.
Seems the witches won.
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