Jessica Barba's Anti-Bullying Project Leads to Her Suspension (VIDEO)
Bullying has been at the center of a national debate for the past few years and bringing awareness to the plight of the bullied has been the mission of several organizations.
So when a high school student made an anti-bullying video for a class project she thought she was helping and she definitely did not think that her project would get her suspended from school.
Jessica Barba, a freshman at Longwood High school chose to make an anti-bullying video for a class project on persuasive promotion. The video was well received but after one complaint Barba was suspended from school, according to WPIX.
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"When they told me I was suspended I just started hysterically crying," she said.
Barba made the video by herself. She created a fictitious character named Hailey Bennett. She even made a fake Facebook page to highlight how bullies and cyber-bullies harm their targets. Her character eventually committed suicide.
"I wanted to influence kids to do the right thing and not bully," Barba said.
To make sure that she did not cause a panic or mislead anyone Barba added several posts on the Fake Facebook account and her video stating that the Bennett character was fictional.
But one parent apparently unaware of the disclaimer contacted school officials and police that led to Jessica being suspended.
"This is an absolute great project and I'm very proud of her. I think most schools would just give her an A on it. Anybody who watches has nothing but great things to say about it," her father, Michael Barba, told WPIX.
In a statement the Longwood Central School District stated: "The district is unable to comment on a matter involving any student. To do so would be a violation of FERPA laws which protect a student's right to privacy."
The video which can be found on YouTube has close to 15,000 views.
