Two four-year-old Black girls had their hands zip tied behind their backs by two elementary school teachers in Decatur, Ga. last week. The girls said the teachers threatened to throw spiders on them, too, if they didn’t behave.
One of the girls has had nightmares about being tied up “like a criminal,” and about being threatened with spiders, according to her mother, who asked not to be identified.
The mother said her daughter said to her: “Mommy, I was scared to tell you because I thought I was going to get in trouble.”‘
“I said, ‘OMG, that’s like being in jail in handcuffs,'” the mother said. “How can someone do this to a four-year-old child”
Shaun King posted the story on his Twitter feed, saying: “This is the (pre) school to prison pipeline.”
2 pre-school teachers in Atlanta were suspended, then resigned, after it was found that they ZIP-TIED the hands of two little Black girls behind their backs.
The girls are 4 years old.
This is the (pre) school to prison pipeline. https://t.co/63sLNkzvtz
— Shaun King (@shaunking) September 29, 2018
The names of the Oak View elementary teachers have not been released yet, but they resigned on Friday. The DeKalb County School District, which has predominantly Black students and low-income families, performs well below the state average in academics across the board (English, Math, Social Studies).
The school took two days to notify parents of the girls, according to the assistant principal’s conversation with the parent.
The school’s letter to parents: “Steps were taken immediately to investigate the allegations that were made including removing the staff members from duty pending resolution of the investigation.”
The letter continued: “The safety and security of our children continues to be one of our main priorities. We sincerely thank you for helping us in this endeavor. We ask that you continue to help us with our safety efforts by “saying something when you see something!'”
The mother of the young pre-kindergarten student said, “Who would do this Would they like this to happen to their own kids”
“I want them to pay… I want them to not have any license to teach because they don’t need to teach,” the woman added.
“This has really shaken me to the core,” the mother said. “If I can’t trust the school system, you know, who can I trust”
