This week’s viral video is a 10-minute video of middle school boys on a school bus bullying Karen Klein, their 68-year old bus monitor. It takes place in Greece, N.Y. Your heart will break watching this.
It’s over ten minutes of vulgar profanity after insult after poking and then again. During this barrage of abuse, Klein sits. She is mostly quiet, staring, or crying. She responded, “Unless you have something nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.” They responded by escalating their harassment. They bully her about her age, weight, body image, appearance, how much money she has, and her economic status. They threaten to harm and sexually abuse her.
What a way to end the school year! At least four seventh-grade boys joined in, continuing their verbal assaults of Klein from beginning to end in this video. She said she hopes she doesn’t get them next year. How long has Karen Klein had to endure this bullying?
The video was posted to YouTube and went viral. The story was picked up by national TV and news media. Klein was interviewed on CNN and by Anderson Cooper. Klein revealed the taunt that made her cry was when a boy said she was so ugly her children would commit suicide. What the boys didn’t know, in fact, was one of her sons did commit suicide a decade ago.
Oh the shame! Shame on these boys and their parents. The school system is pursuing disciplinary measures. The Greece police announced Thursday that Karen Klein said she is satisfied with the action by the school department, and will not be pressing charges. Though the police affirmed that they leave the option open for Klein to press criminal juvenile charges either as a misdemeanor or a possible felony, if she chooses, at a later date.
As the story spread, Max Sidorov, of Ontario, Canada, initiated an online, crowdsource fund at indiegogo.com called, Lets Give Karen -The bus monitor- H Klein A Vacation! The goal was to raise $5,000 in one month. Sympathizers have been donating virally. As Friday morning, the fund stands at $453,545! This is a miracle – asking for $5,000 and getting nearly $500,000, with 28 days left to go.
There are many versions posted out on YouTube. One version was posted on June 19 (Wednesday), and it has 3,719,678 views as of Friday morning. Another version posted June 20, has 466,664 views. At the 8 minute and 25 second point, Karen said, “Live with integrity.” Famous last words that should not be forgotten.
thats just terrible, this is the most disgraceful video i have ever seen!!!! all the kids who were apart of the bullying should be ashamed…….she was a 68 year old bus monitor, she was an adult. thats realy DISRESPECTFUL – talking to an elderly that way. everyone has feelings!!!! if you dont have anything nice to say then dont say it at all!!!!!!! it makes me want to cry just watching it, it made me so mad-I wish i was there, i would have stuck up for her. Karen didnt do anything wrong at all, she didnt deserve it. EVERY ONE OWES KAREN AN APOLOGY! thats not the way to talk to ANYONE.
This is horrible!!! Made me cry. I hope these kids get in trouble. Bullying needs to stop!
this is disgusting! and these kids need to be punished! this is an elderly woman show respect! this made me really mad! why? what did she do to you? NOTHING! she was doing her job and got bullied by a bunch of kids for it!
this is so sad they dont deserve a good anything i hope when they grow up they are a homeless bum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁
These are our children? These are the future leaders of our nation? When does the lack of empathy, of concern, of good manners begin? The participants of the bullying should be paraded in front of the public. We should see their faces, these wise crackers who will lead our country. Shame on them.
How do their parents let these kids talk like this without a smack? Do they have any religion, or
teaching about loving kindness? Does the school do any teaching about kindness? What is
done in the school about bullying. Are any of them Boy Scouts? It is a wake-up call about the
lack of empathy training of our young. What was most shocking is that not one of the young people
spoke out against the disgusting behavior.
Why is there a bus monitor with these kids? We all know 12 year olds are turds so what did you expect when you thought it was a good idea to create a nanny state where a single senior has to sit there and watch 12 year olds. Did you expect anything different? These are the unintended consequences of being overprotective.
I would respectfully disagree. This is not the consequence of having a bus monitor. When I was a child, we had a bus monitor. No one would ever dare speak so disrespectfully to our bus monitor when I was a kid. Why? Because the bus monitor would have slammed us over her knee and spanked us publicaly, and then our parents would have been notified and we’d have REALLY been in trouble. It would have put shame on the family for one of us to act like these kids acted. As a kid I would rather have died than acted like this. So what has changed? Maybe our values- putting “wealth and power” as more important than integrity? Maybe the amount of time parents have to spend with their kids, because few people these days are paid a livable wage for 40 hrs of honest work? Maybe because our kids have become ever so self centered, a trait, in part, taught by reality tv shows? I dont know. But I do know it is not a natural consequence of having a bus monitor, and something seriously needs to be done with these kids.
Ahhh, the good ol’ days. Back when 12 year olds weren’t turds. Must have been nice.
I mean, unless you were black. Or gay. Or a career minded woman, or hispanic, or asian, or had a different haircut. So what were you saying about our values now vs then?
Don’t have to respond to her like a dick dude. She said it respectfully.
Yes, I was a bit sarcastic, but is it really being dickish to point out the realities of our values 50 years ago? Or does it offend some people’s sensibilities to bring it up?
What is the name and address of their school?
What action is the school taking?
In addition, what action(s) have their parents taken?
Has the video been shown to the student body?
You’re just as bad as they are. No not all kids act this way. But judging from your condoning behavior of “what do you expect” your kids would probably be some
Of those boys on the bus.