BREAKING NEWS, UPDATED WITH NEW AUDIO: Darnell “Dynasty” Young, the Arsenal Tech High School students who was expelled last May for bringing an electronic stun gun to school, his mother gave him, to confront students bullying him because he was gay has received from a letter from the Indianapolis Public Schools offering to reinstate him as an IPS student. Dynasty is an openly gay student whose goal is to be a dancer. However, in the letter signed by IPS Chief of Staff Dexter Suggs, IPS offered to re-enroll Dynasty in IPS, but only in an alternative school. Interviewed on Afternoons with Amos, attorney for Dynasty and his family Chris Stoll said that “It is shameful that Indianapolis Public Schools still has not accepted responsibility for failing to provide a safe environment for Dynasty.” Stoll added that, “Rather than acknowledging its duty to protect students like Dynasty from harassment, IPS has said that if he returns, he will be sent to an alternative school for students who are unable to adjust to a traditional school setting. The problem here is not with Dynasty—it is with a school district whose response to repeated reports of severe bullying has been to blame the victim instead of addressing the problem.” Dynasty is currently enrolled in the Indianapolis Metropolitan High School charter school. State law requires all expulsions lasting more than a semester to be reviewed before the start of the next semester, which is why IPS held a review of Young’s status.
Click Arrow To Hear Amos’ Interview with Dynasty Young’s Attorney Chris Stoll. Runs 7 Minutes ©2012 WTLC/Radio One.
Last June, in an emotional interview on Afternoons with Amos last June, Dynasty and his mother Chelisa Grimes, said Tech’s principal demanded that he be “less flamboyant” in his dress even though Dynasty fully complied with Tech & IPS’ dress code. In that interview Dynasty said he’d thought about taking his life because of the bullying and harassment, but he was stronger than that. Mrs. Grimes implored our Black community to stand up against bullying and take it seriously.
