Not again...12-year-old Sikh boy held in juvenile detention 3 days

[MercyA]

From this Salon article:

 

"Imagine that your twelve-year-old son doesn’t come home one day after school. You’re always worried about him because he’s not even a teenager but has already required three open heart surgeries thanks to a congenital condition. He’s not a tough kid but a 'goofball,' and you’ve recently moved from San Antonio to Arlington, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, where everything is bigger, including the trouble. Nobody is telling you where he is. Nobody will answer your questions. He’s just…disappeared.

 

School officials aren’t helping. Neither are the police. Eventually, you discover that he’s being held in a juvenile detention center. He’s born and raised in Texas. An American citizen. A kid."

 

Summary from slashdot:

 

"A 12-year-old Sikh boy in Dallas, Texas was accused by another student of bringing a bomb to school. Apparently he had a powerbag; a backpack with a built-in phone charger. Rather than send him to the principal's office or ask for an explanation, the teacher instead called the police, who promptly arrested him and threw him into a juvenile detention center for three days. The school promptly suspended Armaan, and the police released him after three days but required that he wear an ankle bracelet.

 

Verifiable details are scant, for this case — probably because the whole thing seems to revolve around some 12-year-old kids talking to each other. Armaan's story is that another student said his bag looked like it had a bomb in it, and that he would report it. Believing it to be a joke, Armaan laughed. The police say he "admitted" to joking about a bomb, and they insist their actions were justified. A school district spokesman says the family was notified, but the parents say they had to dial 911 to find somebody who could tell them where their son was being held."

 

Unbelievable.

Edited December 18, 2015 by MercyA

[Guest]

I would be concerned the parents weren't notified and informed more completely, that is unusual. But we had kids pulled like that not infrequently for similar 'threats' in my high school - mostly white and weathly. I wouldn't jump to discrimination based on the facts in the article but demanding a kid into custody without immediately notifying their guardians is absolutely inappropriate.

Edited December 18, 2015 by Arctic Mama

[Guest]

I guess without more information from the police department, and given the information present, I'd be hesitant to jump on he outrage bandwagon just because they claim it had to do with...turbans? Maybe it did, maybe it didn't. But there isn't enough information out there representing the school or department for me to make a judgment on it outside of what looks to be ridiculous abridgments of the legal rights of the student and parent once he was in custody. That is a big issue and outside of the skin color or customs arguments.

[Joker]

Schools are going crazy right now it seems due to threats. Three school districts here had to shut down early for winter break due to shooting threats. Several schools in our previous state had multiple days of bomb threats. I've read of several students being arrested because of all of them.

 

I'm not saying any of what happened to this student is right but I would like to know more before deciding is only about who he is versus what he may have said/done.

[MercyA]

But there isn't enough information out there representing the school or department for me to make a judgment on it outside of what looks to be ridiculous abridgments of the legal rights of the student and parent once he was in custody. 

 

remanding a kid into custody without immediately notifying their guardians is absolutely inappropriate.

 

Yes, there is plenty to be upset about outside of discrimination concerns.

Edited December 19, 2015 by MercyA

[Guest]

Demanding = remanding, sorry for any autocorrect confusion :o

[HRAAB]

The days behind bars? Twelve years old? I hope there is far more to this story than what we are hearing.

 

No, I don't really hope there is more to it, but there would need to be far more to it to justify these actions.

[MercyA]

Demanding = remanding, sorry for any autocorrect confusion :o

 

Fixed it.  :) Autocorrect is a mixed blessing!

[umsami]

I saw an article from a Texas paper.http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2015/12/arlington-isd-says-12-year-old-sikh-student-arrested-for-making-threat-family-disputes-account.html/

 

  From what I read, the school says he made a threat, the boys family says that lots of boys were joking around, but only he was arrested/detained.

 

Times have changed, and I'm not so sure for the best.  My parents, especially, can't believe how schools call police on kids and don't handle/teach about problems themselves.   I'm sure before 9/11, a principal when she realized there wasn't a bomb (actually would they even check), would just talk to the kids about how making threats like that can be misconstrued, cause a lot of worry/expense, etc.

 

I've had to talk to my kids (and did so again today) about how as Muslim kids they cannot joke about blowing stuff up, killing people, etc.  Because of things that others have done, there is a very good chance that any joke would not be viewed as funny and they could end up in jail.  Sadly, that's just the way it is.

[Lolly]

Had this happen to a friend's friend quite a few years ago. He was arrested, held in juvie (where his family was not allowed to have any contact with him), and prosecuted. He was found guilty despite the fact that every single person involved said that they knew he was not making a threat. (He whispered to a friend, "Hey, I got something you can buy." During a bomb evacuation. There were many at this time. He opened his coat like he had stolen goods hiding in the lining.)He was kicked out of school for a few years. It has negatively impacted his life in a large way. (He is now 23. He was in 8th grade at the time.) I sat through the trial. It was an absolute farce. The judge should be prosecuted. THe school administrators should be prosecuted. The child who "reported" it should be charged with making a false report. The school system did get what it was after. They got a kid who was struggling out of their system. It had nothing to do with race.

Edited December 19, 2015 by Lolly

[Anne in CA]

I know of two people who were held in a similar manner who were both white and both convicted of "crimes" they did not really commit. One of them avoided jail, one went to jail for two years. In both cases a serious scapegoat was needed. One of them was a school situation, one was a work situation, but both of them were teens who were held without their parents being told until the "confessed" to crimes they had not committed. Both of them were white, middle class boys.

 

Sadly, I doubt this situation was as uncommon as people would like to think. One good thing about it is that with all the Muslim attention maybe this will get enough press to get this stuff stopped for good. I do think that prejudice against teens is just as common as racial prejudice. I think there is a borderline element in law enforcement that believes teens to be not worthy of due process. Not all law enforcement is that way to be sure, but it only takes a few to really ruin someone's life.

[Lolly]

I know of two people who were held in a similar manner who were both white and both convicted of "crimes" they did not really commit. One of them avoided jail, one went to jail for two years. In both cases a serious scapegoat was needed. One of them was a school situation, one was a work situation, but both of them were teens who were held without their parents being told until the "confessed" to crimes they had not committed. Both of them were white, middle class boys.

 

Sadly, I doubt this situation was as uncommon as people would like to think. One good thing about it is that with all the Muslim attention maybe this will get enough press to get this stuff stopped for good. I do think that prejudice against teens is just as common as racial prejudice. I think there is a borderline element in law enforcement that believes teens to be not worthy of due process. Not all law enforcement is that way to be sure, but it only takes a few to really ruin someone's life.

 

This is what I was thinking too. His being Muslim may work in his favor. It will bring public focus and pressure to not discriminate. (Even if his religion is not the cause of the charges.) As a result, he may have a chance to be released/not charged. I hope for his sake that this is the case.

[Aelwydd]

This is what I was thinking too. His being Muslim may work in his favor. It will bring public focus and pressure to not discriminate. (Even if his religion is not the cause of the charges.) As a result, he may have a chance to be released/not charged. I hope for his sake that this is the case.

He's not Muslim, he's a Sikh. Completely different religion.

[quark]

This is what I was thinking too. His being Muslim may work in his favor. It will bring public focus and pressure to not discriminate. (Even if his religion is not the cause of the charges.) As a result, he may have a chance to be released/not charged. I hope for his sake that this is the case.

 

He isn't Muslim. Sikhism is a different religion altogether.

 

ETA: Posted at the same time as a pp.

 

Like umsami says we've had to be similarly cautious. We are not Muslim or Sikh but have darker skin tone and at a quick glance, do resemble people of Middle Eastern origin. I have asked kiddo time and again to be careful about what he jokes about and to not use certain words. He is especially cautious these days (in colder weather) about not wearing a hoodie. He doesn't have that luxury anymore. Another disadvantage is that he is tall and doesn't look his age (young teen). Looks like a 16-18yo. Many Sikh boys tend to be tall too (I have numerous Sikh friends and grew up with some of them) and that can be another reason that ignorant people in authority jump to conclusions (apart from thinking the name/ skin color/ features and occasional turban wearing is related to Islam). So much ignorance. It's just appalling.

 

Edited December 19, 2015 by quark

[swellmomma]

My kids and I are listening to an audio book called "little brother" quite good and far too believable, stories like the one posted here, make that book sound far too real.  

[umsami]

On a side note, when talking to my kids, I was trying to remember the 5 Ks of the SIkh religion..and they all thought it was cool that they had the bracelet and the little sword.

 

There were Sikh kids at my school growing up.  What I remember of the boys, is that they would wear their hair in a bun on top of their head with a small amount of fabric covering the bun.  It wasn't a full-blown turban.  But, I doubt that matters to people looking for something different.  I have really thick hair, and even when it gets below my jaw length, I can get headaches.  I feel for the Sikh people with thick hair who can't cut it. 

[BooksandBoys]

I saw an article from a Texas paper.http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2015/12/arlington-isd-says-12-year-old-sikh-student-arrested-for-making-threat-family-disputes-account.html/

 

From what I read, the school says he made a threat, the boys family says that lots of boys were joking around, but only he was arrested/detained.

 

Times have changed, and I'm not so sure for the best. My parents, especially, can't believe how schools call police on kids and don't handle/teach about problems themselves. I'm sure before 9/11, a principal when she realized there wasn't a bomb (actually would they even check), would just talk to the kids about how making threats like that can be misconstrued, cause a lot of worry/expense, etc.

 

I've had to talk to my kids (and did so again today) about how as Muslim kids they cannot joke about blowing stuff up, killing people, etc. Because of things that others have done, there is a very good chance that any joke would not be viewed as funny and they could end up in jail. Sadly, that's just the way it is.

It probably doesn't make you feel any better, Umsami, but I actively teach my boys that they absolutely cannot joke about/talk about blowing things up, guns, etc, either. While I recognize that your kids are more at risk than mine simply because of religion and (perhaps) appearance, it's not a safe time for any child to run their mouth. Hugs to you and yours, by the way. I think of you and the stress this country is putting you through often.

 

And if anyone took my kid away without telling me, I'd break the bank to fight them in court.

[swellmomma]

Growing up there was 1 sikh kid in my grade (and 1 Japanese, and 1 East Indian, and you get the idea, from K-gr 9 my classes were predominately white).  No one thought anything about his religion, we thought he was really cool because his family owned the Red Rooster store (convenience store) and they had a ton of money and a huge house on the edge of town in the estates.  We held a huge bush party there for gr 9 grad (high school starts in gr 10 here).  

In high school we had bomb threats a few times, they evacuated us just like a fire drill.  We hung around in the parking lot next to the school excited to be missing class.  The school was checked out and we all filed back in the doors to class, if they found the idiot that made the threat they usually got a suspension from school and faced some charges but never did jail time etc.. The threats are not different now than they were 20-25 years ago, but the reactions are far more over the top. 

[idnib]

My goodness. Do the taxpayers of Texas just have extra $$$$ to burn these days? Maybe if the cities pay out enough in various lawsuits they'll come to their senses. Sometimes only money talks.... 

[umsami]

An as a contrast, the college drop-out from Maine responsible for the terrorist threats to two school districts has been subpoenaed and has three days to respond.  

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3367044/Maine-college-drop-21-center-hoax-terrorist-threat-emails-New-York-Las-Vegas-issue-subpoenas-former-student-claims-knows-origin-posts.html

[SKL]

Just recently heard of a non-minority white kid going to prison for a significant time period for making false bomb threats.  So I agree that minority status aside, a bomb threat is no joke even if it is a joke.  I'm sorry this youngster apparently didn't realize that.

 

I would hope the cops have a record of when they called the parents to inform them of their kid's whereabouts.  Hopefully that could be easily verified if necessary.

[mommaduck]

He isn't Muslim. Sikhism is a different religion altogether.

 

ETA: Posted at the same time as a pp.

 

Like umsami says we've had to be similarly cautious. We are not Muslim or Sikh but have darker skin tone and at a quick glance, do resemble people of Middle Eastern origin. I have asked kiddo time and again to be careful about what he jokes about and to not use certain words. He is especially cautious these days (in colder weather) about not wearing a hoodie. He doesn't have that luxury anymore. Another disadvantage is that he is tall and doesn't look his age (young teen). Looks like a 16-18yo. Many Sikh boys tend to be tall too (I have numerous Sikh friends and grew up with some of them) and that can be another reason that ignorant people in authority jump to conclusions (apart from thinking the name/ skin color/ features and occasional turban wearing is related to Islam). So much ignorance. It's just appalling.

 

My eldest was stopped on his way home from work one night, specifically because he was wearing a hoodie and the cop couldn't see his face. Tall, light skinned, nineteen years old. Few people walk here, most have cars, and few things are open late at night. Gangs and drugs are issues. My son showed him ID and explained he was coming home from work (the officer then realized where he worked and verified with my son). My son understood, but will still use his hood because of weather and it's safer with the gang issue for them NOT too be able to see his youth or skin tone.