Today’s media is a strange beast, to say the least. Nowadays news has shifted from reporting the facts to inform the American people into a multi-party frenzy to push various differing political agendas.
I bring this up because nowadays, the journalism industry being the box of madness that it is today, many bizarre and rather troublesome incidents in our very neighborhoods are often swept under the carpet and aren’t discovered until long after they’ve occurred.
Last fall, Starling K-8 middle school came unpeeled following a horrific “prank” that almost became fatal. Columbus art teacher Mrs. Woods was rushed to the hospital after experiencing violent allergic reactions to bananas (believe me, it’s much worse than one might perceive).
Mrs. Woods’ allergy to the fruit had been well known throughout the halls of Starling K-8. For her safety, she even posted a sign on the door of her classroom demanding all students who previously eaten or touched a banana to wash their hands thoroughly before entering the classroom, deeming it a “Banana Free Zone.”
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This common knowledge didn’t hold back a thirteen-year-old girl and two twelve-year-old boys. In the name of what they deemed a “prank,” they smeared banana on the door handle of Mrs. Woods’ classroom. In addition, the trio threw bananas at the unsuspecting teacher, with several coming in contact with her skin.
“She starts to change colors,” according to a security staffer. “They gave her one EpiPen; It wasn’t working. They gave her another EpiPen (and) her throat was starting to close up.”
Fifteen minutes later, Mrs. Woods slipped into anaphylactic shock and was swiftly transported to a medical facility. Fortunately, she eventually would recover.
A security guard commented on the incident, saying it could be classified as “attempted murder.” The three students were charged for assault in juvenile court. They would serve probation and were eventually transferred to different schools.
Preceding the incident, Scott Wortman, the chief communications officer of Columbus City Schools, stated that “It is our hope that this was a teachable moment for the children involved and for our entire school community on the potentially life-threatening consequences of food allergies.”
Unfortunately, violence against teachers is increasing on CCS campuses according to the police, reported 30 incidents of assaults in the year of 2019 alone. Hopefully, by drawing attention to fiascos such as this we can work to prevent such juvenile delinquency in the future and provide a safer and more productive environment for our children to learn in.
Samuel J. Claude
Associate Editor