Dear Bridget,
I do not know which spelling of your last name is correct. It was reported both ways, so I included both ways in the title of this post.
First of all, I want to say to you that I am sooooooo sorry that you had to go through this attack by your teacher Evelyn Tirado. What she did is not correct, not right, and not okay. As was reported, you were not doing anything wrong in wanting to retrieve your language arts notebook nor in going to a doctor's appointment. It is also very disturbing to me that the teacher assaulted you in front of your mother. That she did this in front of your mother tells me that your teacher was out of control totally.
I want to apologize to you for the actions of this teacher. I am really sorry that you were assaulted. I do not know what the court will decide or what her punishment will be. I want you to know that no matter what happens in court, you did not deserve to be hit or sat on. You did not deserve to have your notebook ripped. And you do not deserve to live in fear.
Adults do not always do what they should do. They do not always treat kids with at least the basic respect that we all deserve as human beings. What this teacher did to you was very very wrong. You are fortunate that you have the support of your parents, that some kids ran for help, that you have some friends who will stick by you. It is okay for you to be afraid and to hurt. It is okay for you to cry, to lean on your family, and to ask for help. It takes strength to show people that you are sad. I believe in you.
I hope that you will be able to hold your head high and say, "I am Bridget and I can rock the world." You are the hope of the future. As you get older, I know you will remember what happened to you. The memory may always hurt a bit. But I also know that you will remember to treat kids better than the way this teacher treated you.
I have my own memory. Although what happened to me at the hands of my school principal wasn't nearly as big, I do not like to think about it even now. I had been excused from gym class one day. I was walking down the hallway coming from my locker on my way to the gym class to sit and watch-- which is what I was supposed to be doing. I was in eleventh grade. The principal came up to me and asked me something. Maybe it was why I wasn't in my gym suit, I really don't remember. I told her I was excused from gym class that day and she said to me, "Oh... [something I don't remember now]...I should hit you." And she went to slap my face. She was an older woman, in her sixties. And I was almost as tall as she was. As she went to slap my face, I took a step back and then whirled around in a circle. She missed. This seemed to make her even more angry. I shouted, "I'm going to tell my mother on you!" and then I ran down the hall to get away from her. A day later, the Biology teacher made fun of me for telling the principal that I was going to tell my mother.
In closing, I want to thank your parents for supporting you and the other students who ran and got help. And I thank you for being you.
sapphoq n friends
I took this picture with my cheap digital camera and then altered it on my computer. If reusing, please provide a link back to this blog post, or credit to sapphoq. Thanks.
http://bronx.ny1.com/content/top_stories/156349/bronx-student-claims-teacher-attacked-her-during-classroom-argument
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/bronx-teacher-evelyn-tirado-arrested-assaulting-student-article-1.1026547
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