Middle School Fails to Act After Anti-LBGTQ+ Assault on 13-Year Old Girl
"I tried to get them off. I tried to get them off"
On April 20, 13-year-old Nadia Todd was jumped by a group of at least five boys after being cornered in a stairwell at Indianapolis’ Arlington Middle School. If that isn’t egregious enough, how the school chose to handle the physical assault is even worse.
With attacks on LGBTQ+ youth becoming more frequent, aggressive, and violent, it’s time for all hands on deck, which is why I didn’t hesitate when the LGBTQ+ youth advocacy group, Rainbow Youth Project, asked if I was interested.
I knew Nadia’s story needed to be told - and I wanted to be involved.
Nadia Todd. Photo courtesy of Jessica Todd
As the mother of an LGBTQ teen myself, the school’s dismissive attitude and lack of action both horrified and infuriated me, as it should any parent.
Nadia told her homeroom teacher, Mr. Henderson, that she was being bullied by the group of boys, but was dismissed. When I asked her how that made her feel, “Sad, scared, and angry,” she responded.
This is just one of the reasons her mother Jessica made the decision not to return Nadia to school.
Schools should be a safe space for students, and all cries for help must be taken seriously. Bullying is an act of violence, and by ignoring Nadia’s claims of escalation the school not only did her a disservice – they are complicit.
“Mr. Henderson made me feel like…it made me feel like he didn’t understand,” the soft-spoken teen said. “That trust factor is broken,” Jessica added.
I emailed Mr. Henderson for a statement, but haven’t received a response.
“The school still hasn’t reached out to give homework or computer since April 21, not even a call to see how she is,” Mrs. Todd said. So the level of concern for her well-being isn’t there one bit.”
“I hope they at least say something because for them to say how such an awesome student she was and how good she is and all this other stuff, not one phone call has been to see how she’s been doing or anything from nobody at Arlington. She loves it there so much, and she’s such a great student. But I guess it just goes to show it kind of seems like they really don’t care” – Jessica Todd
The physical attack came one day after Nadia had an altercation with the boys, that was entirely preventable had Mr. Henderson and the school acted.
The next day they were waiting for her in an unsupervised stairwell known for physical fights.
She didn’t know it was coming, they caught her in the stairwell. the next day they were waiting for her and that’s when they physically jumped her. Her wrist was hurting. She didn’t show signs of emotional damaging. I wanna press charges. She named three of the boys, but it was pushed to the side.
“I’m riding this full out, and I’m gonna sue your ass!” Mrs. Todd said.
Jessica and Nadia. Photo Courtesy of Jessica Todd
During the beating, the boys hurled racial and homophobic slurs at the bi-racial teen, telling her “We’re gonna keep doing this.”
School counselor, Ms. Carole Stacker, dismissed what happened as “horseplay,” telling the Todds, “You know it was right after lunch. Kid’s play.”
The Todds met with Ms. Stacker, Principal Billips, and IPS coordinator Mr. Wynne to find some resolution, but their idea of accountability and Mrs. Todd’s weren’t the same. Instead, they made Nadia feel marginalized.
“They did not believe me – how they were looking at me. But Mr. Wynne understood.”
My email to Mr. Wynne also went unanswered.
The school hasn’t been sympathetic to what happened to Nadia either, telling her mom that what happened to her daughter “doesn’t make an excuse for her not to go back to school.”
Except Nadia is in a partial cast because of concerns about hairline fracture and restriction of blood flow. That’s not an excuse, it’s a fact.
The day Nadia was supposed to give her formal statement, a bomb threat was called into the school according to a source.
Instead of helping the student, Arlington Middle is punishing her – marking her truant for every day she misses.
Monday will be over a month.
Speech delayed when she was younger, Nadia’s currently on an IEP plan and receives speech therapy. But that hasn’t stopped the bubbly teen from, in her mother’s words, “working her butt off,” to do well in school.
I emailed Principal John Edge – listed in the school’s directory – to ask why Nadia’s work hasn’t been sent home, and what (if anything) the school plans to do to ensure something like this doesn’t happen again. He didn’t respond personally, but I did receive a statement from the Communications Director for Indianapolis Public Schools, Alpha Garrett.
Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) has determined – based on witness statements and facts discovered, which are much different than what had been alleged – that disciplinary action was not warranted. IPS affirms its support for all students and staff,ensuring a safe and inclusive environment.
However, according to a source, the school said it declined to discipline Nadia’s assaulters because “some of the boys were suspended and kicked off the football team.”
With four kids in the home – Nadia, her 15-year-old sister Jasmine, older brother Moses, and younger sister Natalia – Jessica and her husband have their hands full.
But the loving, multi-racial family has pulled even closer together while battling IPS on more than one front.
Pictured: Nadia (far left), Jasmine, Jessica, Moses, their 93 yr old grandmother, and Natalia (kneeling). Photo courtesy of Jessica Todd
Unfortunately, Nadia isn’t the only one in the household who’s been bullied – or physically assaulted.
Her sister Jasmine was jumped by 3 girls in what Mrs. Todd says was a racially motivated attack.
The volleyball, basketball, and flag football star has been battling mental health issues and depression since the incident.
At one point, the bullying of Jasmine became so extreme that the 15-year-old turned to self-harm.
At 5’10, 215 lbs, Jasmine is more than capable of holding her own, but the mental toll the bullying has had on her mental health led to thoughts of the high schooler “unliving herself.”
Jasmine is still in school and a part of the Inner Beauty mentoring program.
Despite being an uphill battle, Jessica Todd is nowhere near giving up, and her support of her daughters is unwavering.
“The best thing is for them to know they aren’t alone in this fight,” Jessica said. “You don’t let anyone silence your voice,” she added. “I’ll always have your back.”
Jasmine and Nadia. Photo courtesy of Jessica Todd
Arlington Middle School has had nearly 500 safety and disciplinary incidents. That’s almost over five times the number of incidents at Indiana schools with similar demographics
When I asked Principal Edge if he had plans to put cameras in the stairwell, he didn’t reply. Nor did he reply to questions regarding the school’s responsibility to keep the students safe.
Indianapolis Public Schools claims to support a positive and safe learning environment, but its response to the bullying and physical violence against Nadia and Jasmine leaves a lot to be desired.
The IPS Student Code of Conduct states, “We know that it is critically important that our schools are safe environments where students are a part of learning communities that support their ability to learn and thrive.”
Words without action are nothing more than lip service.
The bravery of Nadia and Jasmine, coupled with Jessica’s unrelenting commitment to her family and the rights of children everywhere who are going through the same thing, is both motivating and inspiring.
It’s time for the rest of us, to join in the fight. No child should be made to feel unwelcome, unwanted, marginalized, or afraid for simply being who they are.
As parents, we entrust schools to not just teach our kids, but empower, encourage, uplift, and above all – protect them.
Elevated Access Nadia’s been offered a free flight over Indianapolis so she can “look down” on her bullies. Rainbow Youth Project is coordinating the flight.
* Thank you to Rainbow Youth Project for bringing me this story*
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Indiana is in the running for most intolerant state.