Forum Post: Florida: Felony for Experimenting While Black
Posted 10 years ago on May 2, 2013, 8:58 a.m. EST by shoozTroll
(17632)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
Yes, with all the complaints about how lame we are in education, Florida charges a High school student with a felony for trying a little science.
Perhaps destroying this child's life.
I don't want to hear another complaint around here about how it's the students who are the problem.
"News of Kiera Wilmot’s arrest has seriously unnerved me. She is the Florida high school student who was experimenting with common household chemicals in science class that resulted in a minor explosion. There were no injuries and no damage to school property; however, she was taken away in handcuffs, formally arrested and expelled from school."
You do understand how this shows evidence of racism in the Florida schools?
EDIT: A petition is now available.
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The reaction goes far beyond the classroom.
"Nationwide, black children spend more time in the dean’s office, more time being opportunity transferred to other campuses and more time cycling in and out of juvenile detention facilities than children of other ethnicities. Conservatives love to attribute this to poverty, broken homes, and the kind of Bell Curve dysfunction that demonizes “welfare queens” who pop out too many babies. Yet there is no compelling evidence that socioeconomic differences play a decisive role in these disparities. [ii] The fact remains that black children are criminalized by racist discipline policies regardless of whether they’re privileged “Cosby kids” or are in foster care or homeless shelters. According to Daniel Losen and Russell Skiba, authors of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “Suspended Education” report, “ethnic and racial disproportionately in discipline persists even when poverty and other demographic factors are controlled. [iii] "
It's racist.
http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/mad-science-or-school-prison-criminalizing-black-girls
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Not sure where you are getting that, but this shows being low on the economic ladder as a factor too.
http://www.indiana.edu/~safeschl/cod.pdf
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Yes, I see now.
It all falls in line with Florida's schools to prison program.
http://colorlines.com/archives/2013/02/in_2012_florida_arrested_12000_students_in_school--and_that_was_an_improvement.html
It applies mostly to those of color.
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Yeah, it is pretty sad, but the schools to prison program is not exclusive to Florida. It's a popular program throughout the South East.
So those numbers, in reality are much higher.
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It's just our old friend ALEC doing it's work for the the brothers Koch and friends.
Private prisons, DEMAND a certain level of occupancy.
They're just planning for their future viability on the boards of WallStreet.
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No they shouldn't, but that's not what ALEC is doing.
ALEC is paving the way to profitize EVERYTHING.
Americans want to privatize everything!
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Unfortunately, the Americans that want social programs are in great minority. America is all about "my, myself, and I", it's not about communities.
They don't have the money for all that, they have to figure out how to insert "creationism" into the science curriculum.
This child was an exemplary student.
http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/16-year-old-girl-arrested-and-charged-felony-science-project-mistake
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Yep...sadly, she's gonna need it.
On the upside, these things are sometimes the makings of a wonderful civil rights activist, who fights against this kind of social injustice.
http://www.biography.com/people/groups/activists/civil-rights-activists
If she gets convicted of a felony in Florida, her life is forfeit.
The entire "good old boy" network will be arrayed against her.
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If not among scientists that might have wrecked a thing or two in the name of curiosity.
Keep in mind that she did tell school officials that she was doing this.
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2013/05/scientists_back_kiera_wilmot_b.php
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Wow. Just wow.
"On 7 a.m. on Monday, the 16 year-old mixed some common household chemicals in a small 8 oz water bottle on the grounds of Bartow High School in Bartow, Florida. The reaction caused a small explosion that caused the top to pop up and produced some smoke. No one was hurt and no damage was caused. "
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2013/04/florida_teen_girl_charged_with.php
If the star quarterback did it, it would have been laughed off, as boys will be boys.
Tried as an adult. Unbelievable.
Life ruined at 16, in a State that elected a man that committed medicare fraud for governor.
Welcome to the new, unimproved south.
Ya, I've pretty much lost all hope for that state. I keep waiting for them to get their shit together.
They destroyed their education system several years ago as it stands. Their government is as corrupt as hell. They have sold the state.
Support for her is beginning to spread.
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/urban-scientist/2013/05/03/scientists-support-for-kiera-wilmot-solidarity4wilmot/
Whatever else is said or done, trying this child as an adult is ludicrous.
The petition is here.
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-bartow-police-and-state-attorney-jerry-hill-drop-charges-against-kiera-wilmot
Here's the info for the rest of them.
Polk County Superintendent, Dr John Stewart. Phone: 863-534-0521 Fax: 863-519-8231 Bartow High School Principal, Mr Ronald Pritchard. Phone: 863-534-7400 Contact the Bartow Police Department Phone: 863 534-5034 Fax: 863-534-5030 Email: lbryan.pd@cityofbartow
Yeah, trying as an adult is hideous.
It is good to see the scientists support. Very good.
Ya, and it is moving pretty quick. Over 30,000
One would think our Florida posters would be all over this, yet not a one has so much as commented here.
Now that's lame.
Well, this isn't Zimmerman and it didn't involve guns.
Since we are being downvoted on this, I would have to think that there are those silent few that approve of this arrest.
I'm going to bump this and edit the OP to include the petition.
Ya, let me help.
Please sign the petition included in the OP..........:)
Here we go again playing the "race card". Why can't we just deal with the facts -
Society has created this monster and now we are complaining about it - hey everyone wants to be politically correct - this is a result of it so stop whining about it.
You folks are the ones who created the circumstances that created this problem with your whining and wanting government to take charge.
Well, governmemt is taking charge and you don't like it. Well tough shit - get over it or do something about it to change society so that the people will be in charge of their own lives instead of allowing government to be in charge for them.
This isn't the first incident where a kid in school did something stupid to cause them to be placed in handcuffs and taken off to jail.
You are the ones who is creating this enviornment because of your "nanny attitude" of wanting to be told what and how to do things instead of thinking for youresleves.
Deal with it or change it. I'm tired of listening to shit like this always blaming someone else because of what someone did or did not do -
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Not all that surprising that black kids should be arrested for inadvertently making bombs when white kids are being arrested for wearing T shirts. It's a really sick and highly politicized educational system.
She ended up getting a scholarship....................:)
Scientist's at NASA helped out.
What did you do for the T-shirt people?
Most science projects in school have to be approved by the science teacher. Did the parents sign off on this?
It is not because the kid was black, it was because she did something which anyone not under a rock would have associated with common attempts to make homemade bombs. Maybe the expulsion was excessive, but some punishment was needed.
What was the hypothesis trying to be proven in the experiment?
It's irrelevant.
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2013/05/kiera_wilmot_case_prosecutor_w.php
This is as ridiculous as the 2 kids who got suspended for pointing ;. pencils and saying 'bang'. However, I see no racism here. Just overreaction. She'd be in just as much trouble if she were white.
Yes Virginia. It's racism.
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2013/05/kiera_wilmot_case_prosecutor_w.php
http://colorlines.com/archives/2013/02/in_2012_florida_arrested_12000_students_in_school--and_that_was_an_improvement.html
Institutionalized racism. That's what "overreaction" to the behavior of "certain" people IS.
Racism.
I don't see any racism at all. Just fear mongering Americans obsessed with calling anything they can as being racist, sexist, or a terror attack.
You would either have to be there, or you would have to read the info in the links.
Here's some more. It's one of Florida's "best" things.
http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2010/09/15/118985/greer-racist-gop/
http://colorlines.com/archives/2013/02/marco_rubios_impossible_task.html
http://tampa.cbslocal.com/2012/10/12/florida-passes-plan-for-racially-based-academic-goals/
http://bioranger.wordpress.com/2011/06/22/police-corruption-and-racism-in-orlando-florida/
I suppose they don't have any of that in Hong Kong?