Bullied Indigenous boy still feeling the effects of his school assault

Stonybrook Middle School student Theo Osborne was bullied on Feb. 11 by two boys, one of which attacked him by pulling out his hair and punching his face, allegedly for being Indigenous. Since then, the 11-year-old boy has had high anxiety and PTSD, according to his mother Melissa Johnson.

“Just the fact that I have to explain to him what his flashbacks are, like, he was in the shower, and he called me, and he said when he closed his eyes that he was remembering his head getting smashed. So, I said to him, ‘That’s PTSD,’” she said.

“So, I had to explain that to him, and I just feel like that’s so heartbreaking as a parent to have to explain that what you’re experiencing is the PTSD that happened when he was supposed to be safe at school.”

Johnson said her son hasn’t been in school since the incident happened, having returned only three times. Theo asked his mother to transfer him to Clearspring Middle School as he doesn’t want to be around his bullies and his best friend is at CMS. Administration has agreed to the transfer.

“Just the kids, I don’t know what they spread about him, but he has hardly no friends now,” said Johnson. “It seemed like, in his eyes, that everyone’s rallied around the bullies and nobody wants to talk to him,” she said.

“I didn’t think he should have to switch schools, but that’s just what the point has gotten to. And if his mental health is going to excel better outside of that school, then I think that’s the best decision,” she later added.

The two bullies did apologize to Theo for their actions.

When the incident happened, the school put the two boys on a two-day suspension, of which one day of the suspension was inside the school. Even though he was told not to, the boy who punched Theo kept coming into Theo’s classroom multiple times, which made Theo feel uncomfortable. The other bully was still in Theo’s class until just recently when he was moved to another classroom.

“I feel they could have done a lot more to rally around Theo. The school, they could have had an assembly. They could have really did something for anti-bullying just to show that we don’t accept this behavior and just show more support to Theo. But because they didn’t do that, I feel like that’s what led to Theo not wanting to return now,” said Johnson.

Johnson feels that the school and the division let Theo down. She questioned why initially she was not allowed to have her advocates present during a safety plan meeting with the school, even though she had brought them to the meeting following Theo’s assault with no issue.

She claims she was told that the school was instructed by superintendent Joe Thiessen not to allow the advocates in as they were not prepared to have the advocates there and wanted her to attend the meeting without them. Johnson said she refused and had to reschedule the meeting to the following week where assistant superintendent of student services Rod Kehler was present. Johnson asked during the meeting why she wasn’t allowed to have her advocates at the previous meeting and she was told that it was in case she had any questions. She said Kehler was very supportive.

Another issue Johnson has with the way the school handled the bullying situation, is that on the day that Theo was assaulted, she said she and her husband were only notified about the attack three hours after it occurred.

“I mean, that was a lot of time where he was just sitting there after being assaulted that we didn’t get a phone call. And his dad took him straight to the hospital. So, if we would have known at 12:30 p.m. that it happened, we would have taken him straight to the hospital at 12:30 p.m.”

The Carillon received an email from a spokesperson from the minister of education stating that the department was aware of what happened to Theo and has been in contact with both the family and the school division.

“No child should ever feel unsafe or targeted in a place of learning,” stated the spokesperson. “Our priority is ensuring that the family feels heard and supported, and that the school division is taking the necessary steps to address the situation with care and seriousness.”

After the bullying incident, the division issued a statement writing that immediate action had been taken by the school and that the division feels every student deserves to feel “safe, respected, and supported” and that “violence, racism, and discrimination have no place in our schools.”

The statement further read that, “We recognize the broader impact this incident may have on Indigenous students, families, staff, and community members…We remain committed to ensuring safe and supportive learning environments, and to advancing truth and reconciliation, equity, and safe schools for all.”

The Carillon asked the Hanover School Division what it is doing to address racism, asking if an Indigenous elder would be coming to the schools or what teachers were doing in the classroom, and the division did not respond.

“I think that the reason why (they didn’t respond) is because they’re not doing much of anything. They should have a plan in place. Like, they should have had – they should have did it immediately as soon as this happened,” said Johnson.

She noted when the school year started, she offered the new principal and vice-principal the opportunity to have Theo dance in his regalia for students as he is an experienced traditional grass dancer.

“I think that that would have brought a lot of education to the school, like, knowing that they have a dancer in the school and they know what style he dances and they know who he is, where he’s from. I think that would have probably stopped a lot of the bullying that took place, but they never did take me up on that offer,” said Johnson.

Recently, the Southern Chiefs’ Organization reaffirmed the importance of Indigenous education in Manitoba schools following recent public discussion about land-based learning activities in the Portage la Prairie School Division.

“Education is strongest when it is built on understanding and respect,” stated SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels. “Learning about First Nations cultures does not diminish anyone’s faith or identity. It strengthens the ability of young people to live together in harmony within a diverse society.”

Johnson said it’s sad that this incident will forever be a part of her son’s story, but she believes Theo will come out of this stronger and better. She said her family has received an overflowing amount of support from outside of Steinbach.

Theo was invited recently to attend a Manitoba Mukluks fashion show at Roseau Valley School in Dominion City where Johnson said it was nice to see him “smiling and joking around with the other kids and being accepted for who he is.”

Two weekends ago, Theo was also asked to sing with drum group Grandfather Stone Singers from Shoal Lake 40 during a powwow.

“That was a pivotal moment, I feel, for his healing because…I just seen that it was really bringing back that bright light inside him. And I could see his confidence rising each day that he sang with them for the three days,” said an emotional Johnson.

Johnson has met with the province’s Indigenous Excellence department about what happened to Theo and her dealings with the school and division. Indigenous Excellence provides leadership and co-ordination for departmental initiatives in Indigenous education and training. It operates from within the Department of Education and Early Childhood Learning.

Johnson said a representative told her that the department plans on meeting with the school division. She is hopeful that something good will come out of the meeting.

“I’m hoping that they’ll follow their own policies and take bullying and assault in school – like assaults leading up from bullying – to be taken more seriously and for them to actually hold these kids accountable so that it doesn’t happen again and for more Indigenous education, of course,” she said.