Connecticut father sues after Ebola fears keep daughter from school

[muriel_volestrangler]

A father sued a Connecticut elementary school on Tuesday, saying his 7-year-old daughter was discriminated against and banned from school for 21 days based on irrational fears of Ebola because she attended a wedding in Nigeria.

Stephen Opayemi filed the lawsuit in federal court in New Haven, Connecticut. He asked a judge to order the schools in Milford, Connecticut, to immediately permit his daughter to return to her third-grade class.

Opayemi's daughter has not experienced any symptoms associated with Ebola and her health is fine, but parents and teachers were concerned she could transmit Ebola to other children, the lawsuit says.
...
Nigeria had 20 Ebola cases and eight deaths this year before the World Health Organization declared the country Ebola-free on Oct. 19. The epidemic is centered in three other West African countries, where about 5,000 people have died: Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The Connecticut third-grader, Ikeoluwa Opayemi, traveled to and from Lagos, Nigeria, between Oct. 2 and Oct. 13, according to the lawsuit. Her father, a native of Nigeria, also went.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/28/health-ebola-usa-education-idUSL1N0SN2FG20141028

Fairly late for the suit - according to the BBC, she's banned until 3rd Nov. If I were him, I'd have sued as soon as the WHO declared Nigeria Ebola-free, on the 19th.

[Lancero]

1. It's never to late to fight against discrimination.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

2. We are a nation gripped by paralyzing fear of almost everything. nt

[KMOD]

3. There has been so many stories like this lately

It's just so sad.

[bmac19gg]

4. eh, not really discrimination

School did what its supposed to do which is to look after the well being of students. The parents are doing what they're supposed to be doing which is looking after the interests of their children. And the courts will do what it's supposed to do and resolve the situation. This is how we want things to work and so I don't think discrimination is was the right word to use because it doesn't appear there were any sinister motives here.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. Yes, really discrimination. The WHO declared Nigeria Ebola-free

The school did not do what it was supposed to do, which is to educate that child. It also could have taken the opportunity to educate the panic-stricken and stupid parents. The courts will not be able to go back in time and get the education back. Perhaps the girl will have to do extra work to catch up. Perhaps her fellow children, having seen an awful example set by their parents, will bully her. This is not how we want things to work. It is blindingly obvious she should have been allowed in the school. Whether this is 'sinister' depends on whether the encouragement of idiocy and fear is 'sinister', I suppose.

[bmac19gg]

7. i just dont think its that big of a deal

Parents are overlay cautious with their kids and I don't really think you can blame them for it or claim discrimination here. And the reason why I said this is the way its supposed to work is because that's the function of the various tiers of authority in our society. In a situation like this you want the school to be able to take action to protect the group and you want the courts to be able to review that action to protect the individual. It will work out have some confidence in society.

[muriel_volestrangler]

9. No, it's far better for society if people in charge of schools are knowledgeable and don't panic

or allow those who are stupid and panicking to intimidate them into denying children their rights. The loss of 3 weeks of education is a small wrong; the idea that idiots "can't be blamed" for bullying people is awful. The school did not 'protect the group'; they gave in to baseless fearmongering. They are supporting the anti-science know-nothings. As a school, it is their job to educate them, not give them power.

[bmac19gg]

11. well just consider....

....that people also lie about their medical and their travel history so maybe its not a good idea that we set a mandate for telling schools they cant make decisions in favor of caution. You're throwing out words like "baseless fear-mongering" and "anti-science" and I'm just not seeing it. Now if the court uphold the ban you'd be spot on.

[muriel_volestrangler]

13. Her father is a native of Nigeria; why would he lie about them going to Nigeria?

If you think that "people also lie about their medical and their travel history", then all schools should be closed forever, because everyone who claims to be healthy, and to have been in Ebola-free countries, might be lying. In fact, the entire school has been in a non-Ebola-free country - ie the USA. Would you allow them to close the school for that? Nigeria had no Ebola cases while the girl was there; meanwhile, there were cases in the USA. That's why "baseless fear-mongering" and "anti-science" are accurate phrases.

[bmac19gg]

21. I'm not challenging anything you're saying

I just believe the parent's reaction natural and the school's action justifiable. The girls not a threat right, she's healthy? So she'll be back at school soon. I think the school did the right thing, the dad is doing the right thing, and the court will do the right thing and that's civilization working as intended.

I respect what the position you're taking but I don't think our convo can go any further so I'll leave you with a fun emoticon.

[pnwmom]

14. Why should she have to do extra work to catch up? Can't she do her work from home

as I did when I got chicken pox, German Measles, Measles, Mumps, pneumonia, etc?

And she isn't even sick so it shouldn't be hard to keep up.

[uppityperson]

15. good lord, didn't your parents believe in vaccinations?

[pnwmom]

17. Sure they did. But the only childhood vaccines then were for Polio and DPT.

The other vaccines arrived in time for my kids, but not for me.

[uppityperson]

18. Aha, you are of that age group, thanks. Me too. But my parents were so mean they only let me eat 1

sugar cube with polio vaccine in it.

[pnwmom]

19. Hah! I got both. The shots at first, and then I remember getting a sugar cube.

So we might be age-mates.

[muriel_volestrangler]

20. Doing homework is never a full substitute for actual teaching

otherwise schools would use it routinely instead of having children attend classes. But I said the loss of education was a 'small wrong'; the big problem here is the cringeing uselessness of the school authorities, and their enabling of bullying by parents, and the bad example they set for the other chidlren.

[Xithras]

8. So you would have agreed with the school that kicked out Ryan White over his AIDS diagnosis?

Because it is the EXACT same situation. The government did not recommend that he be banned, the doctors agreed that he wasn't contagious, and medical science said that he posed no danger to other children. And yet, fearful parents and administrators banned him anyway. "Just in case."

Back in the 80's, it was considered such an extreme overreaction that even Ronald Reagan opposed the move. Punishing innocent children over misplaced fear is something that ALL thinking people should OPPOSE.

[bmac19gg]

12. sometimes caution conflicts with morality

And there's no doubt that its both unfortunate and necessary. You can always make reparations for hurt feelings.

[uppityperson]

16. Doing immoral things is "unfortunate and necessary"?

[bmac19gg]

22. well that was a pretty good twist o' words

[uppityperson]

23. Clarify please?

sometimes caution conflicts with morality And there's no doubt that its both unfortunate and necessary.

[seabeyond]

6. good. allowing this fear to dictate policy needs to stop, now. nt

[FLPanhandle]

10. I hope they win, it might make administrators turn on their brains next time.

This whole Ebola panic/fear/concern has been a great big example of the lack of science understanding in our society.