ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, October 4, 1996 TAG: 9610040021
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-2 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: NEW YORK
SOURCE: The New York Times|
A 7-year-old Queens boy who was suspended for sexual harassment after he kissed a classmate and tore a button from her skirt was allowed to return Thursday, after school officials weathered a wave of criticism and said they would review the school system's harassment policies.
The second-grade boy, De'Andre Dearinge, missed three days of classes but was permitted to return after his parents met Wednesday with the school's principal, Gerri Perriott. She sent the boy home last Friday with a letter handing down a five-day suspension.
The incident came on the heels of a similar case that drew worldwide attention to a small town in North Carolina and became fodder for talk-show hosts and columnists suggesting that ``political correctness'' was beginning to claim under-age victims.
But with many companies holding seminars to explain what constitutes sexual harassment, parents, school officials and experts contended that a 7-year-old was unlikely to understand the concept.
``Clearly Title IX doesn't reach a little boy kissing a girl,'' said Verna Williams, a lawyer at the National Women's Law Center, referring to the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in schools. ``That's not pervasive harassment, it's not a pattern, it's not severe, and sometimes a kiss is just a kiss.''
The Board of Education said that it would reconsider its sexual-harassment guidelines, which list examples of sexual harassment and possible penalties but does not describe how the policy should be applied to students of varying ages.
``Clearly, the policy needs review,'' said Chiara Coletti, a spokeswoman for the board. ``We have to look at whether it should be specific about age, and what that age should be. One can conclude that sexual harassment is a concept that a 7-year-old can't take.''
School officials would not discuss details of the incident between De'Andre and his classmate, nor would they release the girl's name. But the boy's mother, Erica White, and stepfather, Michael Bryan, said the principal had misinterpreted a child's innocent peck on the cheek, and instead of reprimanding him for his action, had overreacted by charging him with sexual harassment.
``Sexual harassment is too harsh a charge for an elementary school child,'' White said. ``My main concern is how this is going to affect his next 10 years in school.''
Inside her uncle's house, a few blocks from the school, White said she had fought the charge because she did not want her son, who sings in the choir at St. John's Baptist Church and wants to be a writer, to have a tainted record. ``It's going to be off his record now,'' she said of the charge. ``That's all I wanted.''
The parents said they learned of the suspension when De'Andre returned from school last Friday afternoon, carrying a letter from the principal. ``He thought it was a good letter, since he felt he'd had a good day at school,'' his mother said.
Instead, the letter, signed by the principal, told the parents to keep De'Andre out of school this week. The second and final paragraph said in bold capital letters: ``Reason for suspension: SEXUAL HARASSMENT.''
The letter omitted details of the incident. But after speaking to her son and school officials, White said that as De'Andre sat beside a girl during lunch break, he kissed her.
After Wednesday's meeting , De'Andre explained to reporters that he had torn the button from the girl's skirt because the character in his favorite book, a bear, found himself in a similar predicament - missing a button.
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