Randy Duke, the Victoria father who is in the middle of a heated conflict with V.I.S.D, stopped by our studio today to let the listeners know what was going on in his fight against Victoria Independent School District.
In case you haven’t heard, Randy’s son Max, an 8th grader at Cade Middle School, who has been bullied for about 3 years now, was punished for standing up to the bully when he had finally had enough. According to Randy, Max gave a special needs child a paper airplane that he had made and the bully in question took it upon himself to step on and crush the paper airplane and after years of abuse from this child, Max decided that he had had enough, and was not going to take it anymore. A fight ensued and that’s that right? Wrong.
According to V.I.S.D., a fight is a fight no matter what the circumstances. So what does that mean? It means Max was punished for standing up for himself. He was suspended for 30 days and forced to go to an alternative school taking him away from the marching band, which he loves dearly. “He used to be in a shell, but I’ve seen him emerge from that shell” Randy said of Max after he said his son changed for the better because of the band. “Now, he’s quiet and keeps to himself”.
Randy has been picketing Cade Middle School with a sign that says “They punish bully victims here”.
Luckily, a silver lining to the dark cloud. Randy informed us that Mr. Jaklich, the district’s Superintendent, has agreed to meet with Randy personally.
“I really have a good feeling about this guy” Randy said of Jaklich
No word yet on the final resolution but keep checking back and we’ll keep you informed. This story has already garnered national attention from CNN, The New York Daily News, and The Huffington Post just to name a few. Bullying is a serious problem and it needs to be dealt with. It’s time school districts across the country to wake up and start handling situations on a case by case basis instead of blanket rules for everyone.
And to Max, stay strong bud. You’re a hero and there should be more like you. You have a ton of people pulling for you, you’re not alone in this.
Randy is also hosting a Bullying Awareness meeting on October 18th and details can be found on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/events/437314436315319/ .

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