According to a letter from the agency, the US agency of Education said on Friday that it is initiating an inquiry into whether an Oklahoma school system “failed to react appropriately to alleged harassment” in the wake of the murder of tenth student Nex Benedict.
Nex, a nonbinary individual, passed away on February 8, after a fight with other Owasso High School students. The cause of his death remains unknown, but an early examination showed they were not dead from trauma, despite the ongoing battle.
The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, filed a complaint on February 21 alleging a “failure of Owasso High School to address documented instances of bullying, violence, and harassment” and asking federal education officials to look into “the circumstances leading to the death of Nex Benedict.”
The Department of Education is investigating allegations of harassment within Owasso Public Schools, aiming to determine if they adhered to Title IX sex-based discrimination protections and Title II disability discrimination protections, as per a letter to the Human Rights Campaign.
Official for Owasso Public Schools Brock Crawford stated in an announcement on Friday that “the district is dedicated to cooperating with the federal government and thinks that the claim filed by HRC is unsupported by the evidence and is without merit.”
Rep. Mark Pocan, chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, has announced a probe into the murder of Owasso Public School principal, Nex, who was a victim of prejudice and harassment. The investigation is seen as a crucial step towards ensuring every student in Owasso Public Schools can learn without prejudice or harassment.
Following a brawl between two student groups in the school toilet, a police officer is seen interacting with the adolescent and their guardian at a hospital on body camera footage from February 7 that the Owasso Police Department made public.
On the day of the altercation, according to Nex, they went to the loo “and we were laughing and I was talking with my friends and they were chatting with their friends.” They also uttered something along the lines of, “Why do they giggle like that?” Additionally, they were discussing us in their presence.
A group of students allegedly threw water at a school, leading to a violent altercation. The students, including Nex, allegedly threw the water bottle on the children, causing Nex to seize one of the girls and throw her into a paper towel dispenser. The other students then began beating them. The incident was resolved by a staff member and students, and all students went to the nurse’s and assistant principal’s offices. The investigation is still ongoing.
The academy quarter has denied the nature of a pupil’s correctional action due to civil sequestration laws, while a GoFundMe has been established on Nex’s behalf, while the Benedict family expressed concern about the incident’s early details.
The family added,” We supplicate those entrusted with the disquisition and execution of all conceivably responsible individualities to do so fully, fairly, and expediently.”” The Bridegrooms supplicate for meaningful change where importunity is taken duly and nothing has to deal with a farther preventable tragedy because they’re well apprehensive of the disastrous consequences of importunity and academy violence.”
