According to the New York City Department of Education bullying is “taken very seriously” and they “have programs to address” it. But for 14-year old middle school student Kardin Ulyssee, who was attacked in a Junior High School cafeteria on June 5, life as a student was mixed with fear and violent attacks by a group of boys leading to him becoming blinded in one eye.
In a report by CNN, Ulysse has filed a $16 million lawsuit against the city. The lawsuit is for the schools failure to properly supervise the students accused of the attack and failing to acknowledge complaints by the teen that he was being assaulted with kicks, punches and anti-gay slurs. Ulysse says “I can’t see from my right eye at all, nothing” and as a result has had two unsuccessful surgeries to restore his sight.
This latest attack is an example of the very serious consequences of bullying amongst our youth. Locally, the city of Springfield, MA is still remembering 11-year old Carl Walker-Hoover, who committed suicide in 2009 due to bullying. The Hoover family was featured on ABC’s Extreme Makover: Home Edition in a story of holding strength and how bullying affects family, our youth and our communities.
In Kardin Ulysssee’s case, two of the accused have been affected and face disciplinary action. The teen is standing up and saying that this is not “okay” and that he will be taken seriously as an individual. But for the family it has been hard, Kardin’s father tells CNN that “we are very private and it’s like very, very hard, we can’t really function.”
Ulyssee will have an attempted cornea transplant to try to repair the vision.
Fight bullying by donating to the Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover Foundation. “Be a buddy, not a bully”
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