Earlier this year, a Houston-based 6th grader named Sekai was brutally assaulted by an older student at Jones Middle School, part of the Aldine Independent School District (ISD).
School surveillance cameras caught the attack on Sekai—who is Autistic, non-verbal, and “functions [at] the level of a 4-year-old.” The tape also revealed that three nearby school aides failed to intervene and essentially allowed the attack to escalate.
The alarming video shows a large child punching the 11-year-old to the ground, and the assailant later kicks Sekai as he crawls on the floor. Three school aides are also shown in the video, and they’re being blasted for failing to intervene and simply watching the attack take place.
“Those adults in that video stood there. They did not attempt to help my child,” Sekai’s grandmother, Veda Cavitt, said.
Cavitt also noted that school officials initially downplayed the incident to her, as they merely told her Sekai “had been involved in an incident where a student punched him and pushed him down.”
“It is a disgrace what’s on that video, but it’s an even further disgrace at the actions of the professionals who are hired and paid by the taxpayers of Aldine ISD,” Quanell X, a community activist, said.
“When I watched that video when we received it and got it, I was beyond horrified and shocked. This is what you call a minor incident?” he continued. “You see, these weak, sorry-ass paraprofessionals stand there [and just watch]. The man who’s a paraprofessional that’s in the video, he needs to be kicked in his behind.”
Dr. Candace Matthews, associated with a social change group called the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, also commented on the matter.
“What we saw in this video was deplorable. It was horrid, and it was unacceptable and inhumane,” Dr. Matthews said.
“Every child deserves the right to have a safe learning environment and effective support from the school district that serves them. Aldine ISD, you dropped the ball,” she added.
Aldine ISD has released a statement on the matter, assuring that “appropriate administrative action” has been taken against the three special needs paraprofessionals.
“This incident should have never occurred. The district trains paraprofessionals in nonviolent crisis intervention techniques at the beginning of each school year and will reinforce that training during the remainder of this year,” administrators wrote.
“An investigation was conducted immediately, and appropriate administrative action has been taken regarding the employees. Aldine ISD takes these situations seriously as the safety and security of our students and staff will always be our top priority,” the statement continued.
