Rachel Ehmke, 13-Year-Old Minnesota Student, Commits Suicide After Months Of Bullying

[RandySF]

Rachel Ehmke, a 13-year-old seventh grader in Mantorville, Minn., died April 29 after hanging herself at her home. The months leading up to the tragedy were a whirlwind of peer abuse instances, her parents say.

Now following Rachel's Friday funeral that was met with widespread community condolences, Rick and Mary Ehmke are speaking out against the bullying they say their daughter endured at Kasson/Mantorville Middle School and online.

Rachel's family and friends say the teen fell victim to school bullying last fall when her chewing gum was stuck to her textbooks and the word "slut" was scrawled across her gym locker, the Austin Daily Herald reports. And while she was outgoing, athletic and friendly, the same group of girls reportedly threatened Rachel and kept calling her a "prostitute," though she had never kissed a boy, according to KMSP.



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/08/rachel-ehmke-13-year-old-_n_1501143.html?ref=mostpopular

[xchrom]

1. 13 years old. nt

[Fumesucker]

2. Ms Emke reminds me of my daughter at that age..

[TBF]

3. When will this stop?

We are failing as a society - losing so many teens to suicide. We have got to take this seriously and do something about it.

[Quantess]

4. Someone not even at the school sent the text message

There was a horrible text message being sent, but it was traced to someone who was not a student at the school.
Weird.

[redqueen]

5. Too many parents and administrators think it is part of growing up.

I can't think of any other form of abuse and harassment which is thought of that way.

Children need much stronger advocates.

[dkf]

6. Bullies need to be expelled or put in special schools for problem kids.

Obviously there is a culture of tolerance for this and other types of misbehavior.

We need more options to get the disruptors away from kids who want to learn. This is a problem for our educational system, no discipline and no remedys.

[Javaman]

7. rockin' in the free world...

Neil Young

There's one more kid
that will never go to school
Never get to fall in love,
never get to be cool.


One Time One Night...

Los Lobos

A young girl tosses a coin in the wishing well
She hopes for a heaven while for her there's just this hell
She gave away her life to become somebody's wife
Another wish unanswered in America
People having so much faith
Die too soon while all the rest come late
We write a song that no one sings
On a cold black stone where a lasting peace will finally bring

[riderinthestorm]

8. The schools willfully look away. The graffiti on her locker stayed there for weeks.

Even after the family tried to get the school to take action to stop the bullying, the school really failed. They couldn't care enough to even eradicate the "slut" graffiti for many weeks after the incident. That really epitomizes the school's attitude to me.

This stuff really has to stop.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

9. Maybe it's time to criminally charge bullying brats

whose behavior results in someone else's death. IMO, this is murder. Plain and simple.

[Posteritatis]

13. Them and the school. (nt)

[vaberella]

10. And people wonder why some kids go postal and shoot up a school.

Guns aren't the problem. Not really. Bullying is the problem and always has been.

[Ikonoklast]

11. Rachel looks startlingly like my daughter did at that age.

Words fail.

We are a cruel species.

[riderinthestorm]

12. My daughter has this girls fair coloring as well and my first glance at the pic made me stop too

Its just so sad, she's beautiful! Really beautiful....