Colleen Dougherty: Video made light of real pain, problems

I have been a counselor in Merced Union High School District since 2001. I have been trying to understand how the video from Buhach Colony High School passed through the layers of administration to become the final product. The students aren’t at fault as they rely on us to guide them. I have thought about it, and I have come to the conclusion that many adults might not actually know what our students face with each day. Many have lost family members, friends and acquaintances to shootings and other violence.

Perhaps there would be a deeper understanding and emapthy if they actually met them and heard their stories. Our community and schools have much to offer, but I think many of us need to face the fact that we also have issues with gangs, violence drug addiction and poverty. Minimizing, dismissing or making those issues a source of parody will not help. By doing so, we risk further desensitizing our kids to violence – normalizing it as just a part of life. Denying that it occurs and acting like we live in Mayberry is also counterproductive.

Dismissing such things as simple “mistakes” without actual discussion dismisses the real pain of many students. I speak only for myself.

This story was originally published November 14, 2014 at 11:45 AM with the headline "Colleen Dougherty: Video made light of real pain, problems."