Around a hundred people demonstrated in Sallent (Bages) this Tuesday, one week after the two 12-year-old brothers jumped from a third floor. Demonstrators have protested the harassment who suffered Alanathe trans minor who died and who had stated that he wanted to be identified as Ivan.
The concentration began at 3:30 p.m. in front of the house of the minors’ family, on Estació street, where the events occurred. Minutes before, relatives and friends of Alana/Iván and Leila had already arrived to participate in this tribute that began with an emotional minute of silence.
After lighting some candles at the memorial, the protesters have marched towards the llobregat institute, where the two brothers were in their first ESO. The journey, of about 300 meters, has been carried out in silence until, right at the door of the center, applause has started in memory of Iván and in support of his sister leila, who is hospitalized in serious condition. Finally, there has been a Big whistle against the educational center for criticize the management that they did in light of the situation that Iván was going through. The family has maintained from the first moment that the twins suffered ‘bullying’ in high school because of their Argentine origin and because of Alana/Iván’s desire to be treated like a boy.
The demonstration has been called under the slogan ‘Today we shout because we are not going to be silent anymore’. In fact, some families and some students have claimed that the institute had students are not allowed to talk to the press on the subject and that mobile phones have even been confiscated.
Carmen Cabestanypresident of the Association Against Bullying (NACE) He has acted as a spokesman for the family and has regretted the facts. On the situation of the educational center, Cabestany has indicated that surely Sensitivity and consciousness failed about the seriousness of the situation suffered by the two brothers and that, in this sense, it was acted wrong. “They tell me that the students were frequently punished for six hours in the ‘refrigerator’ -a classroom without heating- for having defended themselves”, Cabestany pointed out before pointing out that in this way “the victims were punished and not the aggressors”. For this reason he believes that there should be resignations in the institute.
Cabestany has also considered that the Generalitat’s apologies have come late and has criticized the fact that the Department of Education does not apply the decalogue created by NACE to combat bullying, a scourge that persists in many centers. In this sense, it has offered free training at the institute for both teachers and family members and students. Likewise, she has claimed data on the reality of ‘bullying’ in educational centers.
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Those attending the event have also hung posters at the entrance of the center demanding justice and criticizing the management of the management. A former student has assured that bullying situations occur at the institute and has denounced that the teachers do not act correctly. “They bullied me and the institute did nothing. It’s a shame of the institute,” explained Laia, who says that she has decided to demonstrate “for those who can no longer explain it.”
A current student at the center has explained that Iván and his sister suffered harassment from some classmates. “They laughed at them because they are Argentine, they imitated their accent,” she pointed out, adding that recently they also laughed at Iván because of his willingness to change gender. In addition, she has confirmed that Iván had been in the ‘fridge’, a class that the students call that because it is colder, on several occasions. This student affirms that the institute had indeed taken measures to try to help her.