Tuesday, May 31, 2011

May 27, 2011

"DO NOT REMAIN QUIET!"

When you know someone is doing something that is very wrong that could possibly hurt someone else or themselves, do NOT remain quiet! When we witness an act take place that we know is wrong, we need to speak up and tell someone who is in an authoritative position. By sitting back and doing or saying nothing, we are just as guilty as the person committing the wrong act. Do not be afraid of the consequences that may occur by speaking up. What may happen if we remain quiet may be worse than if we speak the truth. Do not remain quiet!

Today I was substituting at the local middle school, and a fight broke out near the end of day. I witnessed an aide and a teacher trying to physically restrain a child by using every wrong technique possible. As I watched the situation unfold, it became very aware to me that if this type of thing were to happen everyday that someone either the child or the teacher was going to get severely hurt or possibly killed. This entire situation unnerved me very badly, and it left me not knowing what to do. Should I get upper administration involved and tell them that the restraint positions they were using were illegal, or do I just keep my mouth shut. I knew in my heart that the type of hold the teachers were using to restrain this child was illegal because I used to work at a juvenile detention center, and the staff members were NEVER permitted to use this type of hold because it has been known to kill students. The more I thought about it, the more I knew I could not remain silent. I went to the administration office after the school day to discuss the situation with my boss. She assured me I had done the right thing, and she commended me for doing so.

Sometimes, we have to speak up and let people know when wrong things are taking place. If we were to remain silent, even worse things may occur in the future. If you know that someone has committed a wrong even if it was done out of ignorance of knowledge, please speak up and tell someone! Never remain silent! You could save a life!

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