A friend of mine just emailed me - this story-Racism or Not???

punkeemunkee'smom wrote: .


Updated:2007-03-30 03:00:21
Teachers' Sex Charges Bring Cries of Racism
By KATRINA A. GOGGINS
AP
CLINTON, S.C. (March 30) - The arrest of two women teachers on charges of having sex with their male students has brought cries of lingering racism in one of South Carolina's most conservative counties and evoked some of the South's oldest and deepest-seated racial taboos.


Laurens County, S.C., prosecutor Jerry Peace said bail is based on danger to the community and the likelihood that the defendants might flee.


Both women are white. The boys -- six in all -- are black.

Some of the blacks who make up more than a quarter of Laurens County's 70,000 residents are upset over the handling of the two cases, particularly the release of the teachers on bail.

They say the cases reflect the way crimes by whites against blacks in the segregated South were treated less seriously than other offenses, and blacks who leveled accusations against whites were less likely to be believed.

"If this had been black teachers, they would not be out of jail right now," said Corinnie Young, a 49-year-old bookstore employee who is black.

Some blacks shudder to think what would have happened if the teachers were black men and the students were white girls.

"I can assure you if it were an African American male who committed such an offense against a white female, history shows us that the charges, the punishment and the sentencing would be totally different," said state NAACP president Lonnie Randolph. "The system ain't blind when the perpetrator is an African American male or female or when the victim is a white female."


Jerry Peace, the county prosecutor and a white man, said that the teachers are wearing electronic tracking devices and that their release on bail -- $125,000 for one, $110,000 for the other -- was based not on race, but on the danger to the community and the likelihood that the defendants might flee.

In any case, it would be unusual for someone accused of such a crime to be held without bail. Deborah Ahrens, a visiting professor of criminal law at the University of South Carolina, said of the bail amounts for the two teachers: "For the clients that I've represented in the past that were up for similar offenses, that sounds about right."

Signs of racial tension, old and new, are not hard to find in Laurens County. The school where one of the teachers worked used to be blacks-only. In the town of Laurens, where one of the teachers taught, an old movie theater has been converted into a Ku Klux Klan museum and paraphernalia store called The Redneck Shop. There, visitors can buy Confederate flags and bumper stickers, such as one that depicts three Klansmen and reads "The Original Boys in the Hood."

Textile mills were once the chief source of jobs in the working-class area about 60 miles northwest of the state capital of Columbia, but the industry went into decline in the 1990s. The main employers now include a maker of plastic coolers and Presbyterian College in Clinton. As of 2003, nearly 15 percent of county residents lived below the poverty line.

And as in many communities, most neighborhoods in the county are either black or white. People of different races find themselves side by side in one of two places: work or school.

Wendie Schweikert, a 37-year-old married woman who had been teaching elementary school in Laurens for more than a decade, was arrested last year after the mother of an 11-year-old boy accused her of having sex with the boy at school at least twice. Authorities said they found evidence bearing his DNA in her classroom. She is also accused of having sex with him in her car near a miniature golf course and arcade in Greenville, about 40 miles away.

Allenna Ward, a 24-year-old minister's daughter in her second year of teaching, was fired Feb. 28 after she was charged with having sex with at least five boys. Some of the alleged victims, 14 and 15 years old, were students at the middle school in Clinton where Ward taught. Police say Ward, who is married, had sex with the boys at the school, at a motel, in a park and behind a restaurant.

Attempts to contact the women in person and by telephone were unsuccessful, and their lawyers did not return repeated calls.

Black and white residents alike said they are shocked by the accusations. Many echoed the sentiments of Peggy Hawkins, a 50-year-old white resident. "Boys are boys and she done wrong," Hawkins said of one of the teachers.

The Rev. David Kennedy, a local black activist, is among those who see racism at work. He said the white teachers accused of preying on black students figured "they can do what they want to do with them and they know the consequences won't be great."

He suggested that blacks in town are too afraid to speak out: "There's a long history of intimidation and it's a sin. It's unholy in Laurens County to speak out."

Parents whose children go to E.B Morse Elementary School, where Schweikert taught, say they have trouble reconciling the accusations with the woman they knew.

"She was very involved," said Shea Mills, whose son attended the school. "I remember she would make kids pick paper up in the halls."

Bell Street Middle School Principal Maureen Tiller said Ward did well during an evaluation of her skills, and "personality-wise she seemed to be fine."

Nicole Sullivan, whose daughter went to Schweikert's school, said that when the case broke, students brought home notes saying the teacher had resigned. The notes did not explain why.

"I don't want to say it was a racial thing, but if it were a white victim and a black teacher, I think things would have been handled differently," said Sullivan, who is black.



My friend and I disagree on this and so I thought I would ask you all what your opinions were. While I totally agree that if this had been a black male teacher with white female students it would be a different situation. I don't agree that the reasoning for that is racism alone(I am sure it would factor in for some-but not all people). I think in the several high profile cases of female teachers with male students it has been proven that sexual abuse by a woman is a harder concept to grasp for alot of people. I feel like it is almost accepted that boys (men) enjoy and desire sex and somehow that has come to transfer, sickeningly, to these situations too. We tend to look at sexual abuse as a forceful or dominant act and I think it is harder to see a woman in the role of the monster in the closet so to speak. As a southern white woman,I could not care less about the color of the children's skin that were abused. I don't care if the adult who did it is Male or Female,Black,White,Purple or Blue. They are a sick sick &(&*&%%#@ and I don't think they should get out of jail EVER. The fact that they are allowed to keep breathing irritates me enough! It is a shame to me though that this issue being brought up will serve to murky the waters and distract from the crime that was commited here in the first place!

Maddie&EthansMom replied: ITA with you, Abbie!!! That was my first thought...it's not about racism, it's about the crime that was committed and the fact that the women are now out of jail, that's so disturbing.

A&A'smommy replied: ITA with you Abbie it doesn't matter what color, or gender the teachers skin is it has NOTHING to do with the fact that the teacher did something INCREDIBLY wrong and should be punish for it!!!!

luvmykids replied: My first thought was in line with you, I don't care what race or gender the adults are, they are sick *$&%(#$ and should be fully punished. Having said that, I'm not sure I agree that it's racism that set the bonds, etc of these women ....I think it's the fact that they are women, like you said, it doesn't seem quite as "evil" to many people when a woman is the perpetrator....you almost imagine the woman as seductive or nurturing or something along those lines where a man is seen as forceful, manipulative, etc.

I do agree though that a black male having done the same thing with white students would probably have been a much more volatile situation. But in this case I think it's a gender issue more than racial.

TheOaf66 replied: I agree also, color should not be included in this. There can be a racial slant to any case if you work the angles right, it should be about the crime and the ethnicity should be left out. Should it make a difference if the accused is white, black, latin, asian...NO! Should they have been let out on bail probably not but then again that is our justice system...so instead of putting some type of political spin on it and saying this is totally racist, they should be lobbying to have bail removed simply for the crime and focus on getting them put away.

hopefulmomtobe replied: I agree with teh Oaf.

Black/White should be taken out of it.

"2 women get out of jail on bond for sexually abusing 5 minor boys"

That is what it is, plain and simple. Who gets off on having sex with a little boy anyway? I just don't get it.

Those women should still be in jail awaiting trial. Period. I think that people do look for something to throw a fit about, and they are pulling the racist card on this one for sure.

CantWait replied:
I agree, I think this is more of a female teacher with male students, rather then a race isssue per say.

TANNER'S MOM replied: We just had this happen here. A male teacher had sex with a 17 year student. He is also out on bond..and he is white.

I think the bond thing comes from they haven't been convicted yet. Innocent until proven guilty. But that being said..when they are found guilty they should be in jail a long long time.

They better hope no woman every touches my boy like that.. Or I might be in jail with no bond.

jcc64 replied: I do think there's a double standard when the adult perpetrator is a female- like it's every male's fantasy to get "schooled" by a knowledgable female authority figure. Pedophilia and statutory rape are immoral and illegal, regardless of the configurations, but the legal system is only a reflection of the society it serves. Alot of people, especially guys, are ok with it, unforunately. I have an 11 yo ds, the thought of someone destroying his innocense for a quick thrill is appalling, to say the least.
Just a quick comment about the racism issue, which I suspect will be unpopular. I think, as a white woman, I am not fully qualified to render a judgment about the inequities of the legal system. That is, I can assert that this case has nothing to do with racism because I filter everything through my lense as a white woman. I can say that I am aware of racism in a theoretical sense, but I don't really live the reality of it on a day to day basis. I think when racism follows you everywhere you go, in your job, in the bar, on the street, in school, anywhere- as surely it has for many black people in the past and present, I can understand how it colors your perceptions of things- right or wrong. It's unfortunate, because it just drives us further apart- but it definitely helps to try to see things from the other side.

Kirstenmumof3 replied: I think the teachers should be in jail and should not be recieving special treatment!

Crystalina replied: I agree with everyone that the crime is more important.
I also think (and jcc64 I'm not sure if this is what you were trying to say or not) but we are on the outside looking in so we can say that it's more about the crime. These people (from reading the article solely) apparently have a problem with "in-your-face-racism", with the stores and bumber stickers and the KKK club and whatnot. To them it's more then likely just another thing that they are dealing with with race. "A white woman is getting out on bond!" If racism is a daily thing for them I can see where they are coming from with this. It's easier for us not involved in that community to see other things then they aren't seeing. The crime itself for instance.

I hope that made sense.

hawkshoe replied: I definately do not see it as racial discrimination but rather gender discrimination. It seems that female teacher who have sex with male students get off a lot easier than their male counterparts.