Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 10-9-15 Edition

Breaking News
Local
October Is National Bullying Awareness Month:
Barbers & Fathers Inaugural Unity Breakfast Draws Large Crowd
Florida Parents Sue School Board For Not Protecting Son From Bullies
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On Monday, guest speakers addressed a group of profes- sionals and parents at the first Barbers & Fathers Breakfast. The event was held at the Chil- dren’s Board of Hillsborough County and was the inspiration of Dr. Lewis Brinson, Chief Diversity Officer, Hillsborough County School District, and members of Educators For Change.
The speakers included Jeff Eakins, Superintendent of the Hillsborough County School District, Mrs. Doretha Edge- comb, Vice Chairperson, Hills- borough County School Board, State Representative Ed Narain, and Tampa Police Major Rocky Ratliff.
In addition to the speakers, a large crowd of barbers and fa- thers were among those in the audience. Dr. Brinson said, “A community came together for the explicit purpose of hav- ing dialogue about the future of African American young men and how steps could be taken to encourage and inspire them.
“Barbers came out to hear how important their positions are in breaking negative cycles and were praised for attending
LAKE MARY, FL —— In an ab- solutely heart- breaking story about the effects of bullying, a young Florida boy took his life as a result of being bullied at school.
Now the par-
ents are suing the
school and the
school board be-
cause they say it did not do enough to protect him. And since his suicide, other parents have come forward to report their children’s experiences.
Last September, Lamar’s mother, Shaniqua Hawkins, spoke amid tears at a press con- ference less than a week after her son’s senseless death, saying the tragedy followed fruitless pleas for help from school offi- cials.
“They pushed him down stairs, knocked him out of his chair in the cafeteria, mocked him due to his size,” she said, describing the abuse her son al- legedly sustained from fellow students.
“I believe he took his life at school to send a message to these bullies,” she said. “They won, because he took his life as
Lamar Hawkins,
Mr. and Mrs.
III, 14 committed Hawkins filed a lawsuit suicide after being against the Seminole County
bullied at school.
School District.
a result.”
Hawkins was joined by her
husband, Lamar’s father, who said he had reported the bully- ing to his son’s school “multiple times.”
Lamar Hawkins III, 14, committed suicide in the bath- room at Greenwood Lakes Mid- dle School in Lake Mary. Later it was learned that the gun he used, belonged to his father, Lamar Hawkins, Sr.
The boy’s family reported him missing when he wasn’t at the usual place his mother would pick him up at. And hours had passed since a student had reported finding shells from a bullet in the bathroom; yet no one at the school followed up. The teen’s body was found at 11 p.m. by police who say he had shot himself in the head.
Lamar
Among those attending the Inaugural Barbers & Fathers Breakfast last Monday were from left to right: Gary Thomas, Hector Rodriguez, Apoleon Moore, Jr., Vedia Brown, Apoleon Moore, Sr., Adrian Morrow, Dr. Lewis Brinson, Chief Diversity Officer, Hillsborough County School District.
and accepting the charge to “speak life into the lives of our sons,” Dr. Brinson said.
He further stated that the meeting was an exchange of di- alogue and ideas from barbers, parents, and officials. One of the barbers in attendance said that while he is not a father, he has provided guidance to many youngsters who entered his shop. The barber also offered to help any young man wishing to become a barber.
Dr. Brinson said the breakfast was an overall success and those in attendance dis- cussed the next step of bring
their plan to fruition.
“The fathers and barbers
were passionate about the cause and willfully accepted the chal- lenge to be a resource to young men by holding them in high re- gard and speaking to them straight about issues of today,” Dr. Brinson said.
Other members of Educa- tors For Change includes Ross Anderson, T. N. Hill, Shan- non Butler, Dallas Jackson, Alva Simmons, Henry Washington, Henrissa Berry, Patrick Crews, Tavis Myrick, Earnest Wood, and Owen Young.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 7-A