The events took place at Markham Elementary school, but came to the principal's attention just this week when one of the students told a staff member about the events. Oakland school district spokesman Troy Flint said that the teacher was unaware of the incident.
"We believe the substance of the story is true," said Flint.
Counselors have been brought to the school to help the children to understand what happened and how to deal with their sexual curiosities. Flint admitted that the school district is embarrassed.
"We are striving to create schools as safe havens where students can feel secure and trust in adult guidance," Flint said. "Obviously, that trust was violated in this incident, which was unacceptable. We're going to get to the bottom of this and make sure there's no recurrence. "
Just when you think you've seen everything, something like this happens. I am not quite sure what to say, other than what everyone reading this article is already thinking. Clearly, the teacher in the classroom is the first line of accountability in this terrible incident. After that, the school district, the city of Oakland and the school itself may be open to significant legal liability. I would be personally outraged as a parent if this kind of thing went on in front of my child, and I'm sure the parents in Oakland feel the same way.
There is then the broader question of where second graders are learning about things like oral sex. I knew nothing about this sort of thing when I was seven years old. I don't even think I knew anything about regular sex, where babies came from, or that there was no Santa Clause. One of the saddest things about this incident is that the innocence of our youth is something we should be allowed to have for at least a little while. One has to wonder what images the children are seeing on television, at home or with their friends that lead to this kind of behavior. Also, when you see hip hop artists like Lil Wayne rapping about having sex with every girl in the world, you quickly learn that the culprit is probably as close as your nearest electronic device. This incident should never have happened and we all need to be more critical about the music and television shows presented to our kids.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.