See A Crossing Guard Shove And Curse At Student

A video spreading across the internet shows a crossing guard harassing and berating a young student for unknown reasons.

By Erika Hanson | Published

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Teacher Argues With Student In Viral Video For Not Standing For The Pledge

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There are plenty of reasons for the mass exodus being witnessed where parents are pulling their children out of the public school system. For some, it’s the controversial curriculums putting a focus on equity over academics. For others, it’s the growing concern of violence and unruly behavior. But the latter isn’t only being witnessed by students, but also increasingly by educators and school staff. In a recent case, a crossing guard was videotaped lashing out at a young male student, and it’s stirring debate across the internet.

According to The New York Post, the incident occurred outside of Queens Metropolitan High School, a college prep campus, in New York City. The video footage is disturbing to many parents, as it depicts a crossing guard repeatedly following a student, seemingly harassing him over something that happened before the bystander began filming. The faculty member was removed from her position at the school following the confrontation.

The 55-second long clip shows the crossing guard continuously berating the student over something. At one point, she calls him “stupid” as she shoves him. She goes on to call him “stupid a**” demanding that he pay attention to her and listen. New York Police authorities have announced that the investigation is ongoing as they probe the incident.

As the crossing guard continues her verbal attack, the student attempts to ignore her. After she first lays her hands on him, he is heard telling her not to “fu**ing” touch him. When she continues to bump into him and attempt to stop in his tracks, he adds, “Stop touching me, bro!” He continues walking on, telling the crossing guard she did her job by helping him cross the street, telling her to “f**k off.”

While the video is disturbing to many parents as it clearly reveals school staff acting in an inappropriate manner, some people were quick to defend the actions of the security guard. One user said that there was not enough context, alleging that the student may have done something extremely dangerous before the bystander began filming the heated quarrel. Interestingly, the person who recorded the happening appears to be a fellow student, who makes a comment that she is going to get the worker fired. 

With the investigation ongoing, it is unclear what prompted the crossing guard to lash out at the student. However, some of her words give clues as to something sinister that may have occurred beforehand. Throughout the video, she is heard attempting to get the student to listen to her. She makes it appear as if he did something possibly life-threatening to someone or himself. But despite this, the way she handled the situation was clearly not protocol, likely leading to the school administration’s decision to let her go.

This incident sheds light on a growing issue seen in schools, and there are likely multiple factors at play. For one thing, school districts across the nation are struggling to hire and retain not only teachers, but school staff in general, and a lack of pay is only making the hiring pool more sparse. Additionally, an uptick in violence among students is pushing many educators to their breaking points. All of this has led to more and more disruptions in public education.