Donald Trump Assassination Skit Gets San Antonio Students In Trouble, But Parents Want Harsher Punishment
Two 10th-grade boys from Texas, as well as their teacher, were reprimanded after the boys had reportedly depicted president-elect Donald Trump’s assassination in a skit. But a few parents aren’t happy with how the case was treated, and believe that the three, especially the two boys, got away with a slap on the wrist.
Since Trump won the 2016 U.S. presidential elections earlier this month, there have been individuals who, either in jest or seriously, have suggested wanting to kill the president-elect. One such person was Ohio man Zachary Benson, who faced federal charges earlier this week for allegedly posting a Donald Trump assassination threat on Twitter. A report from NBC News quotes one of the offending tweets discovered by authorities despite Benson deleting them soon after they were posted:
“My life goal is to assassinate Trump. Don’t care if I serve infinite sentences. That man deserves to decease [sic] existing.”
Aside from Benson, there was also Matt Harrigan, the chief executive of San Diego cybersecurity company PacketSled, who had recently resigned from his post after a Donald Trump assassination threat he posted on Facebook went viral. According to the Washington Times, Harrigan had taken to Twitter to apologize for what he referred to as a “flawed” joke that was “(taken) out of context” when it became known to the greater public. He announced his immediate resignation as PacketSled CEO on Tuesday after receiving a lot of backlash for his anti-Trump comments on social media.
Now it appears that two teenagers are the latest to get into trouble for suggesting Donald Trump should be assassinated. According to the San Antonio Express-News, two male 10th-graders from John Marshall High School in San Antonio, Texas, had reportedly performed a skit last week called “The Assassination of Donald Trump” as part of an English class presentation. The skit included one of the boys pulling out his cell phone to simulate firing a gun, and making gunfire sound effects as the other boy, who played the role of Trump, mimicked crumpling to the ground and dying.
The Express-News added that the teacher had asked all of the students to pitch their ideas for approval before presenting their skits in class. The two boys, however, changed their ideas on the fly, instead presenting a mock-assassination of Trump in front of their classmates and teacher. Neither the teacher nor the two students alleged of performing the offending skit were named in media reports.
The report also notes that the unnamed female teacher apparently didn’t approve of the new idea, and had stopped the skit in the middle of the performance.
In a succinct statement to the press, Northside Independent School District spokesman Barry Perez confirmed that the two boys and their teacher were reprimanded, and that “appropriate action” was taken. But for two concerned parents, it wasn’t right for the three to get away virtually scot-free, without any punishment.
The San Antonio Express-News quoted Harold and Melinda Bean, the parents of one of the boys’ classmates, and both were upset over the lack of punishment. Melinda Bean told the publication that the boys in particular should have been suspended from school, as younger children mimicking the firing of guns with their hands have gotten suspended in the past.
“Honestly I have run out of words to describe how angry I am and how shocked I am that they’re still in school today.”
Harold Bean, on the other hand, told the Express-News that he wasn’t convinced by the teacher’s apology, suggesting that she should also have been suspended from her post. He added that she shouldn’t have allowed the skit to continue when she realized it portrayed a mock Donald Trump assassination.
“I don’t understand how the teacher can repeat an apology and be right there back at work on Monday morning. Though we understand she is apologetic, it does not make the situation right.”
[Featured Image by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images]
