Carl Walker-Hoover, 11 yrs old; Phoebe Prince, 15 yrs old; Jon Carmichael, 13 yrs old; Seth Walsh, 13 yrs old. And the list goes on... The list of names of the children that have died this year by their own hand after being relentlessly bullied has turned the problem of bullying into an national epidemic. We have to take a stand. We have to help the children.
There is still hope. Irving Middle School was recently featured in the Lincoln Journal Star as they are implementing a new approach to bullying. What do you know about your child's or grandchild's school's anti-bullying policy and procedures? Are they effective? Are they even enacted?
To help us figure this out, Kerry Beldin, an associate professor at the School of Social Work at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, and an NFP board member, came up with a list of questions. These questions are intended to be used by all of us to ask our school administrators the questions we need to know the answers to. We ask--no, challenge--you to ask the questions of the schools your children or grandchildren, nieces or nephews attend... Take these questions to your local PTO meeting... And ask other parents to do the same. Let's find out how our schools are doing. And PLEASE let us know what you find out.
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Jill L Francke
Statewide Coordinator
Nebraskans Against the Death Penalty
On March 25 we saw 22 Nebraska Senators stand up for the average Nebraskan in support of a bill to identify the financial cost of our state’s death penalty system. While there were not enough votes to pass LB 1105, the debate around this issue has shown us that we are making progress in our efforts to end capital punishment—and that work must continue.
As many of you know, the long and complicated death penalty process has already cost taxpayers millions of dollars. More than a dozen states have found that the death penalty is up to ten times more expensive than sentences of life without parole. In our neighboring state of Kansas, the median cost of a death penalty case is $1.26 million, or a staggering 70 percent more than comparable non-death penalty cases.
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Marsha Fangmeyer
Vice President, Nebraskans for Peace
I read Susan Brownmiller’s book, Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape, when it was first published in 1975. My eyes were opened. I certainly did not read this kind of history in high school, or in college for that matter.
Although the use of rape as a tool of war dates back to time immemorial, Brownmiller’s study focused on the 20th century, on the period from World War I through the Vietnam War. In the 35 years since Vietnam, however, there’s been enough new horrendous material accumulated for Brownmiller to pen a sequel. The new book would include a chapter on gang rapes by Halliburton/KBR co-workers in Iraq and sexual assaults among active duty U.S. troops. She might even update a chapter she wrote on rape in the Congo—only this time focusing on the fact that Congolese women (once again caught in conflict) are being raped at the rate of 400 per day. One out of three women in that country has been victimized by rape (a statistic, incidentally, that parallels the worldwide average of one of every three women being physically or sexually abused during her lifetime).
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NFP
With the recent high-profile cases of bullying in schools and the horrible outcomes of that bullying making news headlines, it is a good time for Nebraskans to look at the policies being adopted by our own schools. In 2008 the Nebraska Legislature passed a law making anti-bullying policies mandatory in Nebraska schools, as is already the case with 41 other states. We need to be asking ourselves, Are the policies being adopted adequate? Have Nebraska’s policies gone far enough to protect our children? Nebraska’s law (LB205) was given a B- by the Bully Police, a watch-dog organization, advocating for bullied children and reporting on each state’s anti-bullying laws. The Nebraska State Board of Education has the following policy in place for the Nebraska schools:
The State Board of Education encourages local school districts to establish policies and strategies to emphasize and recognize positive behaviors that promote a safe and secure learning environment for all students and staff. Local school policies should assist school personnel in identifying bullying, intimidation, and harassment; and provide a framework for an appropriate response that reinforces and encourages positive conduct.
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