Breaking news in Tuba City, AZ

The Red Nation Podcast

The Red Nation

Society & Culture, History

4.8 • 943 Ratings

🗓️ 7 October 2024

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

TRIGGER WARNING: sexual abuse

Every Child Matters – Community Rally in Tuba City, AZ

September 30, 2024 – Parents of youth attending Tuba City Boarding School organized a community gathering and rally outside the Navajo Police Department to demand justice and answers. On September 24, a sixth-grade male teacher was arrested at the school for public sexual indecency after evidence of him masturbating in a classroom was collected by students. An act that had been happening for years. The perpetrator was released approximately 18 hours later, and the students’ families have not been able to receive further details of the investigation.

The timing of the incident and rally happened to line up with National Day for Truth and Reconciliation- a national holiday in Canada honoring Indigenous students who never returned home from boarding school and survivors of residential schools. The incident happened at a Bureau of Indian Education boarding school, establishing that these incidents are ongoing and not of the past.

These are their demands:

Support from the 25th Navajo Nation Council to support a request from families to the
BIE demanding a full-scale investigation into the Tuba City Boarding School system to address the misconduct and failures in the school system and provide answers and justice for our children.
Accountability from all identified faculty and administration personnel that knew about the abuse, failed to report it or investigate it, and allowed it to continue.
Federal charges for the perpetrator to ensure the teacher is held responsible for the harm caused to the students, families, and greater community.
Comprehensive solutions to protect every child to ensure their safety.
Mental health support for all students and parents affected by this traumatic event.
Request a joint session between the HEHSC and Law and Order committees of the Navajo Nation council to hear from the families directly, and work alongside respective Navajo Nation departments for justice.

Tracklist: Justine Teba/podcast episode introduction, Starlena Nez/rally opening, KL Chino/interview, Starlena Nez/interview, Kaly Arvizu/interview, Demetrius Johnson/interview, Bijiibah Begaye & KL Chino/rally closing

The Red Nation was live-streaming the rally on our YouTube channel, please subscribe for future live streams.

Follow Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives for updates!

Read the original post here

Therednation.org article

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Transcript

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0:00.0	And So, Did you hear about what happened at Tuba City Boarding School last week?
0:35.0	This past Monday, September 30th, 2024, the Red Nation attended a community rally in
0:42.1	Tuba City, Arizona titled Every Child Matters.
0:46.0	Concerned Parents, Families, and Community Members gathered outside of the Tuba City Police Department to demand accountability and action for the safety and well-being of students across all schools following an incident of sexual misconduct by a male teacher in a sixth grade classroom at Tuba City Boarding School.
1:06.0	On Tuesday, September 24th, the perpetrator was apprehended by Navajo Nation Police Department at the Tuba City Boarding School campus for public sexual
1:15.9	and decency and was released approximately 18 hours later.
1:21.3	The families have been unable to receive any further details on the status of the
1:26.4	investigation despite several requests. The following is a statement by the
1:32.0	parents of the victims and organizers of the rally.
1:35.3	While this incident is the latest, there is a history going back at least three years
1:40.5	of similar reports made to the school administration that were ignored and erased.
1:46.3	The rally is part of a larger movement to prioritize student safety by demanding school
1:51.5	administrations to do everything in their power to protect students and ensure no child is ever harmed in the education system again.
2:00.0	Shock and anger have swept through the community after a tuba city board in school teacher was caught
2:05.4	masturbating in front of his student during class, said K El Chino, a parent of one of the affected
2:11.4	students and an organizer of the rally.
2:14.0	Despite multiple children attempting to report the incident,
2:18.8	school officials ignored their pleas claiming it was hearsay and refusing to act without proof.
2:25.0	Despite multiple children attempting to report the incident,
2:29.0	school officials ignored their pleas, claiming it was hearsay and refusing to act without proof.
2:35.3	Our kids came forward, terrified, and instead of being believed, they were dismissed.
2:41.7	They had to do the unthinkable, put themselves in danger, and gather proof
	...

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