Second-graders shown cartoon with erect penis

Second-graders shown cartoon with erect penis

A video discussing various fears children face has been shown to second-grade students. It features an image, visible for several seconds, of a man with an erect penis as he rises above a child. The local schools superintendent responded to the case only by writing that the content of the video was inappropriate.

WORLD APRIL 2. 2021 12:02

Children are scared of many things and a public school in Greenwich, Connecticut, addressed this issue by presenting an animated short story to schoolkids. The film discusses issues which the students may find difficult to talk about; being abused at home, or having parents strugging with alcohol or drug addiction. The informational video was played to second-graders.

After the five-minute mark, the cartoon suddenly cuts to an image which caused great outrage among parents. It shows an image of the silhouetted man with an erect penis standing over a sad-looking child. The voiceover explains that some „children have experienced an adult touching or putting their penis in the child s private parts or mouth.”

Carl Higbie, a local conservative political commentator, was amongst those infuriated by the video. He was relieved that his daughter in second grade did not see it, but her classmates did, and he was contacted by a number of parents who felt disgusted about the issue.

Mr Higbie has called on the school to launch a full investigation and find the person responsible for showing the children the video, and demanded that whoever was responsible should be fired. He is resentful of teachers also, saying they either  „didn t care enough to review this before playing it” or „thought it was OK.”

Mr Higbie also took to social media and shared an angry post on the issue, and he received a slew of comments expressing disapproval of the video. 

Greenwich Schools Superintendent Dr Toni Jones sent an email addressing the video, acknowledging that its content was not appropriate for second-graders. She suggested that it was likely meant for a private therapy session for children who have experienced trauma.

In light of what happened, parents were offered help from psychology staff on how to discuss the video with their child at home.

WORLD

Tags:

abuse, children, connecticut, fear, school, traumas, video