Community | December 01, 2009 | 85 comments

"Kick a Ginger Day" - Middle school attacks inspired by South Park

source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gnV-fXMF3hArNVryYlqzDJ2KPiewD9CA3VM80

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LOS ANGELES — Three boys were booked on suspicion of bullying or kicking red-haired students at a middle school when a "Kick a Ginger Day" prank inspired by a "South Park" episode got out of hand, authorities said Monday.
A 13-year-old boy was detained last week for investigation of threatening to inflict injury by means of electronic communication — essentially, cyberbullying. Two 12-year-olds were booked for battery on school property, Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
The three suspects, whose identities were not released because of their ages, were booked Wednesday and released to their parents. They could face misdemeanor charges, but it was unclear when the case might be submitted for possible prosecution, Whitmore said.
Four girls and three boys reported that schoolmates shoved or kicked them on Nov. 20 at A.E. Wright Middle School in Calabasas, an affluent suburb of Los Angeles.
No serious injuries were reported. Most incidents involved a single person kicking a student's shoe or leg, but one youngster was bruised when three or four boys confronted him at once, said Donald Zimring, superintendent of the Las Virgenes Unified School District.
He may have been kicked in the groin or head while on the ground, although accounts differ, Zimring said.
"Any time a youngster gets hurt because of a thoughtless act ... there ought to be consequences," Zimring said.
Assemblies were held Monday at the school to discuss the incident.
Investigators said the attacks apparently were inspired by a 2005 episode of "South Park" that parodied racial prejudice by having the character Cartman incite a hate campaign against freckled, red-haired "ginger kids."
The episode apparently inspired the 13-year-old to send his friends a Facebook message declaring "Kick a Ginger Day," Zimring said.
Most students ignored or deplored the message and some sent "Protect a Ginger Day" counter-messages, but a dozen or so students apparently acted on the joke, Zimring said.
The students involved were facing discipline ranging from picking up school trash to five-day suspensions. None will be expelled, Zimring said.
"The youngsters involved understand that this was not acceptable, and they have made various forms of apology and contrition," Zimring said.


http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gnV-fXMF3hArNVryYlqzDJ2KPiewD9...

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  1. groups:
    Community,   Current Tonight,   Television,   Anti-Xenophobia
  2. tags:
    Bullying,  South Park,  Mob Mentality,  Kick a Ginger,  1 more
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85 comments // "Kick a Ginger Day" - Middle school attacks inspired by South Park

  • GingerLoveCa
  • rickm8
    • 0
      rickm8  

    • haha this is pretty funny. we'll never eradicate bullying, so at least it was for a semi-comical cause. then again, I was always cool, popular, and lacking deformities as a upper middle class white kid, so I never got bullied.

    • 2 years ago
  • Prajna
    • 0
      Prajna  

    • This was absolutely the parent's fault for not educating their children about what they were watching, but also the children should have known at that age what is appropriate conduct. I agree with some of the previous posts about how the episode fueled bullying in students who are more apt to bully no matter what, and this too is indicative of poor parenting and lack of critical thinking skills of the students.

    • 2 years ago
  • mire
    • 0
      mire  

    • Let me just say this once....as a parent your duty is to teach your children right form wrong and that includes filtering the images or sounds they ingest. As a mother myself I don't believe in completely sheltering my child from specific harsh reality's,but the content she watches on television and the stars she looks up to in the media are of great concern to me and I refuse to let her be influenced by mindless negativity. I'm sure we can all remember just how cruel children can be to one another,and as adults we should be expected to teach our children how NOT to be by using our own experiences as children.Those poor kids will probably develop insecurities that will follow them through life because of one single act of cruelty inflicted upon them by their peers.I believe the parents should be punished more than the children who did this. And I say this to all the "ginger" folks out there....I love me a redhead with some freckles and creamy pale skin,male or female,you are beautiful!

    • 2 years ago
  • noxidereus
    • 0
      noxidereus  
    • mire:

      "I believe the parents should be punished more than the children who did this"

      You can't possibly believe that for realzies right? That would be one hell of a confusing judicial system if we can punish one person for what another does. I'm sorry but that is utterly ridiculous. Some parents have kids that misbehave for various reasons. It isn't always the parents' fault. Say for example you have a nice single mother who works. How much time does she have in her life to make sure her kid doesn't get into any trouble? How much control do you think people have over other peoples' minds? Say that kid gets into trouble. It's just silly to think we should punish his mother. This is another situation where people are quick to generalize and judge. The kids should get a slap in the wrist and that's it. This has been going on since the beginning of time. It is human nature. The involvement of the law in this matter is going to do more harm to these kids than the bullying itself. How silly.

    • 2 years ago
  • noxidereus
    • 0
      noxidereus  

    • My kids watch whatever they want. They totally understand the satire in Family Guy and South Park. I know because they are sick of hearing me explain it to them. They think I'm retarded to worry that they might copy what they see on TV (although I'm not really worried about that, I'm just doing my job as a parent). As a child, I was the same way. If I had not remembered how I was and how silly I thought adults were for deploring violence in video games and TV I wouldn't let my kids watch it. Never once did I ever want to emulate violence that I saw on TV or in video games against real people. I really think we are underestimating our children. Either that or I just lucked out with my kids. They are very caring and intelligent, so they would never participate in a kick-a-ginger day. My parenting philosophy is that censorship is not the answer. Show them the world exactly as it is, and explain it to them so they get it. I think censorship causes more problems, basically because you won't be there when they see it, so they won't have your wisdom.

    • 2 years ago
  • SparkShark16
  • jfill
  • rojomo
    • 0
      rojomo  

    • While as sad as this is, people will probably end up pointing all the blame on the program South Park. Which is a "cartoon" show Sparky! It ain't real. Explain the difference to your kids if they don't already get it.

    • 2 years ago
  • hell0everything
    • 0
      hell0everything  

    • Oh no, some afluent suburban redheaded kids were kicked in the feets. Tragedy.

      What are these affluent suburban parents doing letting their 12&13 year olds watching South Park anyway? Oh, right, they're too busy being concerned with a ton of monies and not paying attention to their children =)

      Don't worry South Park, I will always love you

    • 2 years ago
  • ProjectBat
    • 0
      ProjectBat  

    • What the hell is this country coming too.

      Kicking and shoving? Are you kidding me? We get the police involved for that? Man, how pathetic. Just give them a detention and send them on their way, they're thirteen year old boys this shit happens.

    • 2 years ago
  • DDukes94
  • Stever_B
  • CalgarC
  • EmperorThan
    • 0
      EmperorThan  

    • "Maybe I can put it best in the words of a timeless song....

      ...I never meant to be so bad to you
      One thing I said that I would never do"

      -Cartman

    • 2 years ago
  • LowShred
    • 0
      LowShred  

    • That's a shame. Wait until they're older and they realize that ginger girls are some of the hottest things to walk the earth.

    • 2 years ago
  • TravG73
  • Crossslash_Manasa
  • RudyRudell
    • 0
      RudyRudell  

    • This is not really related to the school violence thing but I literally have been asked for the third time this week (going into a wal-mart somewhere in the south... honestly don't remember what state or town) "why do you have red hair and blonde eyebrows?" at the check out. seriously people whats the deal.

    • 2 years ago
  • scbarby
  • thornman
  • Makavelli45
  • michail77
    • 0
      michail77  

    • I wonder if the next new episode will involve kid's (probably Cartman) watching an episode of "terrance and phillip" and doing something idiotic????

      It will end with Stan's ethical dialog about it being satire and how the "dumb asses were old enough to know better".

    • 2 years ago
  • irtehjoe
    • 0
      irtehjoe  

    • tv-m.

      south park is for people that enjoy humor LACED in satire. kids dont get that...the show is made in a week or less to stay current with events and the creators are GREAT at making something just seem goofy but at the same time give some real insight into how absurd certain things we see daily really are. south park is an amazing show and blaming it for any acts like this is a cop-out.

    • 2 years ago
  • vans1170
    • 0
      vans1170  

    • i heard about this a while ago, this is ridiculous. for the whole "south park isnt for kids!" i watched south park when it first came out, i was around 7. it's either the parents arent explaining this isnt how you should act in real life, or kids these days are even dumber than when i was a kid. everyone is so quick to sue, and slap kids with charges that they shouldnt be charged with. no one wants to talk or do something about anything, so they just run and blame someone else. entertainment is not to blame for anything. parents need to start taking blame for their actions, and maybe discipline their kid once in a while. also, kids are dumb, and that's how they learn. people need to stop getting so offended so easily.

    • 2 years ago
  • FishaHouse777
    • 0
      FishaHouse777  

    • Damn! I missed it again, when will I actually be able to celebrate kick a ginger day with my fellow racist and stereotypical douchebag friends.....third year in a row I missed this spectacular holiday, luckily next week is GayBashaPalooza week. Get your baseball bats!

    • 2 years ago
  • wayseeker
    • 0
      wayseeker  

    • I think most kids did realize the satire and got the message. I think these kids are bullies just looking for an excuse to abuse other students.

    • 2 years ago
  • regjoeschmo
    • 0
      regjoeschmo  

    • lmao people who hate it cannot understand the satire, and to think it initiates this "bullying over hair color" means you must be one of those people......

    • 2 years ago
  • pandaman2105
    • 0
      pandaman2105  

    • a kid shouldn't watch south park at all. it's just stupid, if they're humor is so intelligent, then why do so many people hate it, and how can it be all that "ok" if it inititates bullying over hair color?!?

      and yes, the parents should be more aware, but if they are usually well-behaved and just watch it for the comedy, then this shows that they can take some negative influence from it eventually and it won't be just "entertainment" forever.

    • 2 years ago
  • irtehjoe
    • 0
      irtehjoe  
    • pandaman2105:

      if youve watched any episode of southpark since about season 6 or so on you would realize that ever episode has an underlying theme that can be easy or hard to spot depending on how dense you are. just because they use fart jokes and little kids swearing doesnt mean thats all the show is.

    • 2 years ago
  • Wharf_Rat
    • 0
      Wharf_Rat  
    • pandaman2105:

      I was about ready to make the same point that you posted! I could not have put it any better than you did. South Park has became the gold standard for what great social satire is. I'll admit that Matt & Trey will occasional use stupid "fart joke" humor, but even when they do, the episode will have a great story to go along w/ it.

      SOUTH PARK RULES!

    • 2 years ago
  • tribe2
    • 0
      tribe2  

    • Maybe it's just me but when did we all turn into a bunch of pussies? I got my ass whooped in middle school and I'm not even a ginger. Seems to me that was just a part of growing up, a part of life. Fights in middle school are so common, shit YouTube has about a million caught on camera phones. Kickin somebodies ass because they're a ginger is as good as any other reason for kicking someones ass in middle school let see there's always too fat, too skinny, to tall, somebody wants your pudding, too poor or you were caught talking to the popular guy's girl, too stupid, you dress like a lumber jack, your mom is ugly, or just because you look like somebody that needs their ass kicked.

    • 2 years ago
  • Follow_me
  • Santi182
  • Wharf_Rat
    • 0
      Wharf_Rat  

    • I blame the parents. I love South Park & thought the "Ginger" episode was great. But if I had kids, I would never let them watch South Park. That is until they understood satire, reality & what real hate speech is.
      sad....sad....sad ;-(

    • 2 years ago
  • MotherForTruth
  • captain_insano
  • nkeg87
    • 0
      nkeg87  

    • Adults don't understand satire so I hardly expect middle school kids to understand it. At the parenting[dot]com article one response even goes as far as South Park being inappropriate for all ages. I think its only inappropriate if you cant understand what it's about. Wonder what people think of infomania... = P

    • 2 years ago
  • bmpxcf
  • Lurkistan
    • 0
      Lurkistan  

    • This is news? Several kids were kicked in the feet and legs and one kid may have been kicked in the head or groin. Far worse things happen every day around the country and world.

    • 2 years ago
  • Found_Avenue
    • 0
      Found_Avenue  
    • Lurkistan:

      When it's a pre-meditated event, organized on Facebook by middle schoolers in various cities across the country, in which children actually plan to attack each other based on physical appearance... yes, I'd say it's newsworthy.

    • 2 years ago
  • LarzNero
    • 0
      LarzNero  

    • I'm hoping the South Park dudes do an episode on how stupid the kids are to actually do this. Then again, the kids probably won't get that satire either.

    • 2 years ago
  • anglcazn
  • calm_incense
  • Wharf_Rat
  • zphoenixdownz
  • littleredmachine
  • handbanana89
  • jaystyx
    • 0
      jaystyx  

    • It must be tough going through k-12 with cyber bullying. Bullying has always been around, but now it can be done on a 24 7 basis over the internet.

    • 2 years ago
  • J_Jammer
  • kreddig
    • 0
      kreddig  

    • I am a ginger and i loved that episode. It is actually a good example of segregation and discrimination that obviously these fucking kids are too ignorant to comprehend. If those kids kicked me, i would have made them drink bleach.

    • 2 years ago
  • bailey78
  • Ares
  • littleredmachine
    • 0
      littleredmachine  
    • kreddig:

      Word up, kreddig. We are in the same boat. I'm a ginger, thought the episode was awesome, and I would have seriously hurt anyone who thought they could assault me for any reason, particularly something this stupid!

    • 2 years ago
  • bailey78
    • 0
      bailey78  

    • thats messed up. I guess now folks will be sueing the creaters of south park instead of monitoring there children. just where does one lay blame? The parents the school or the show? I say the parents of the children should be held responable. They have the duty to make sure the child does no harm to it's self or others.

    • 2 years ago
  • J_Jammer
  • Giganticus
  • Bushido
    • 0
      Bushido  

    • Kids will be kids. If it wasn't a ginger, it would be a nerd or a jew or a homosexual. Of course singling people out for their genetic make-up is horrendous, but let's not pretend that this is a new thing and lock these kids up for life. Those of you on here that weren't nerds yourselves were undoubtedly perpetrators of this sad facet of human nature. This is a life lesson for all involved. Fortunately nobody got permanently damaged.

      And for those who think parents are to blame. I agree, but let's face it, even many adults aren't sophisticated enough to understand the satire behind South Park. Some kids are just screwed.

    • 2 years ago
  • Found_Avenue
  • arlo
  • Future_America
  • becktionary83
  • dwb2585
    • 0
      dwb2585  

    • misdemeanor? WTF?!! The courts need to stay out of this and let the school discipline these children. What ever happened to suspension or detention? Their actions were thoughtless and immature but they don't need a criminal record for that.

    • 2 years ago
  • AmericanStandard
    • 0
      AmericanStandard  

    • OH c'mon I think everyone needs to quit taking themselves so damn seriously. "Tantamount to a hate crime"!?!??! The kids are only 13. It is not like they seriously injured classmates and the fact that girls were involved indicates that it was not malicious. We did way worse for way less when i was in middle school.

    • 2 years ago
  • regjoeschmo
  • ladyofwillows
    • 0
      ladyofwillows  
    • AmericanStandard:

      Wow. I'm trying to come up with something that you can understand, but I find your comment so stupid that you might not understand anything intelligent. So just go ahead and keep thinking that because a girl was involved its not malicious, and that its not a hate crime, even though it is attacking someone based on their ethnicity. Why don't you go laugh a few fart jokes while you're at it.

    • 2 years ago
  • abg123
    • 0
      abg123  
    • AmericanStandard:

      ill try to make this simple so you can understand. if you let kids do what they see on southpark, we could have a bunch of eric cartmans running around. eric cartman is a sociopath and southpark makes fun of him and points out how crazy he is. if we dont make sure kids understand that cartman is an idiot, then they might act like him. cartman once ground up a kids parents and fed them to him. do you understand this? or is that too complex for you?

    • 2 years ago
  • calm_incense
  • Giganticus
  • Lurkistan
    • 0
      Lurkistan  
    • AmericanStandard:

      I agree that this kind of thing is commonplace for kids of that age, this is just a small and stupid fad that will pass, but kids of this age will continue to do stupid things that's just the way it is.

    • 2 years ago
  • honeylo0ksfuhnee
    • 0
      honeylo0ksfuhnee  
    • AmericanStandard:

      @Lurkistan & AmericanStandard
      If you let a little kid get away with kicking someone just cause they have red hair and freckles, then you're saying its okay act maliciously towards someone because of their appearance.

      If that's the case, why limit it to hair color or facial features? Why not base it on skin color or sexuality?

    • 2 years ago
  • handbanana89
    • 0
      handbanana89  
    • AmericanStandard:

      @ abg123: It's a freaking satire. Parents should be helping their children understand good morals and values, without a basis of a comedy program like South Park that makes fun of how fucked up society is and the way we treat eat other.

      I just watched an episode of tom and jerry; I think I'm going to run around like crazy flinging plates at a little mouse and committing violence because my parents didn't teach me it was a CARTOON. really? really man? The satirical cartoon is the root of bad parenting? Interesting theory.

      "cartman once ground up a kids parents and fed them to him. do you understand this?"

      No, I don't understand this, maybe some correct grammar would help? Capitalization is always a plus.

    • 2 years ago
  • readyforthefloor
  • Atalanda_Cameron
  • 402Chicago
    • 0
      402Chicago  
    • Atalanda_Cameron:

      agreed. South Park will be attacked here but in reality their "stupid comedy" is quite intelligent and deep.
      Parents need to understand that they have parental control over their children and that technology even allows us to take the lazy route to this and merely block channels, instead of actually watching and taking part in our kids' lives.

    • 2 years ago
  • regjoeschmo
    • 0
      regjoeschmo  
    • Atalanda_Cameron:

      unfortunately people do not inform their children about what they are watching so the kids take their own perspective on it...... then the blame is laid on the television and not the parents..... its sad to be honest that society has lost its ability to reason when it comes to these things....

    • 2 years ago
  • Giganticus
  • current89
  • Sam_the_Wizer
  • dwb2585
  • Giganticus
    • 0
      Giganticus  
    • current89:

      LoL! You are why liberals are thought of as pussies by everyone else! Not that I care what "everyone else" thinks but they'd have a point on this score. And you do damage to the cause of defeating the ignorance behind hate crimes by trivializing it with your hyperbole. There are a lot of unsophisticated people in our society who see this kind of nonsense and, because it is ridiculous, will dismiss the seriousness of the actual problem.

    • 2 years ago
  • J_Jammer
  • handbanana89
    • 0
      handbanana89  
    • J_Jammer:

      exactly. Nobody else is to blame but the parents. I've never become insistently violent after watching a south park episode.

      At most, I have a stomach cramp from too much laughing at its satirical critique on society...which from news stories such as this...seems to confirm its comical stance.

    • 2 years ago
  • Found_Avenue
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