Hudson, Ohio. A town with a population (according to the 2018 census) of 22,285 people. A town with an outstanding high school band reputation. A town with notably high donation counts. A town that prides itself on active members through religious organizations. A town that boasts financial donations, volunteering, park safety, high graduate acceptance to top-performing colleges, parent/school involvement, renovations, community, extra curricular achievement, gifted children, and so on.
Hudson appears, from the outside, to be an active hub in its community. It seems to strive for excellence.
So why are there so many negative stereotypes associated with the name?
Being an alumni from the Hudson City School District comes with a few jokes, which are frequently thrown around...
"Oh, you grew up in the Hudson Bubble?"
"I graduated from Hudson too! So we both have trauma."
"Were you cool or an outcast?"
"You only survived if you have family status."
...The jokes are amusing and relatable for those of us that attended the Hudson City Schools. But I (and many of us) also acknowledge that there's a reason behind the associated stereotypes.
I moved to Summit County when I was starting fourth grade, so I'm not an individual that was "born and raised" in the area. While elementary school and middle school came with unique challenges, I was not prepared for the hell that was high school. I was met with cliques of girls that told me to kill myself. I was assaulted by an older male. I was called into the school's counselor's office with a fellow student and told that I was "the problem", but was never told what I had done wrong. I asked for help and was told that there was nothing further to do in regards to students attacking me.
And I know what you're probably thinking: "high school is shitty for everyone." This is what I assumed when I graduated; I thought my experience was different than all of my peers. I thought that I was simply a target for a specific group of people and that it was my fault for dealing with horrific actions. I thought "everyone deals with this at some point."
But time pressed forward. I graduated and earned my High School Diploma in 2014. I desperately wanted to leave the past behind me and never think about it again.
But as we grow up, we still see fellow classmates online. We see them growing up, earning degrees, getting married, having children, making friends, creating new lives. Initially, it was easy to assume that high school was a different era and nobody would recall the true nature of what we witnessed.
And then, over the years, I've stayed in contact with some people from school. I've talked about personal experiences, and some have been gracious enough to share experiences with me as well. Experiences that are horrific, damaging, traumatic. Experiences that linger.
I was shocked. From a naive perspective, I genuinely thought that I was a part of the minority that was a target of hateful words and actions. But it turns out that the most common tone from graduates of Hudson High School can be painted in a negative light. The majority of the people that I've talked to have told me that they were a victim of racial profiling, bullying, and/or sexual harassment. A large and concerning amount of people admitted that they built up the courage to seek help through adults and professionals, only to be shut down.
And then last year there were issues that popped up in the media: Hudson High School came under fire for racial slurs being targeted at a student (link here: https://www.cleveland.com/education/2019/10/hudson-high-school-officials-investigating-racist-language-threats-toward-black-student.html ) and more recently, racial slurs being spray-painted at the high school football stadium.
I thought this was common behavior that every school district is doomed to deal with. Spoiler alert: it's not.
While I want to give credit where credit is due (referring to the superintendent, Phil Herman, making responsive statements acknowledging the hateful incidences that have recently occurred within the district: https://www.hudson.k12.oh.us/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID=13&ModuleInstanceID=7057&ViewID=6446EE88-D30C-497E-9316-3F8874B3E108&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=30672&PageID=19), I would also like to loudly proclaim BULLSHIT. I'm sick of people in power stating that they're taking action against hate crimes and bullying but not genuinely doing anything.
So this is where my goal comes in!
Firstly, I wanted to reach out to anyone with an associated education through Hudson to submit his/her stories. I asked people to discuss personal experiences with bullying, racial profiling, sexual harassment, etc. I wanted to open a space for people to openly share. So this is what I have done: listened to experiences and posted them here. I wholeheartedly hope that you carefully read what happened to various people. There are so many people that have fought through the unthinkable but don't have a place to openly talk about what happened.
I hope it strikes a cord. And I hope you realize that you (myself included) are privileged because you can sit comfortably while you read about the unacceptable horrors that were played out on these children; remember that they were all under 18 when these events took place.
*DISCLAIMER: There are incredibly brave testimonies shown below. And immediately following, there is additional information for further action.
SUBMITTED INCIDENTS:
Honestly I never saw any (racism) at school because we had no black people. I know that is a terrible thing to say, but like there wasn't anything happening because there wasn't anyone for it to happen to. Like I literally can't even think of 1 time. Isn't that gross?
Like even ****** who was one of my best friends. I don't remember anyone ever saying anything about him being black. Gay, yes, there was a lot of that BS of course. And honestly maybe its because I just wasn't looking for it so I was blind to it, right there is my white privilege I guess. And as a high schooler racism wasn't really something I was thinking about ya know? I know this makes me seem awful and gross but it's the truth. I just wasn't educated enough to even notice."
-Alex Petsche, Hudson High School Graduate
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"When I was in 7th grade, I was wearing a bra with criss cross straps and the straps happened to show because I was wearing top with a keyhole opening at the back. (The principal) took me aside during lunch and told me I couldn’t have my bra straps showing and it made me uncomfortable that an adult male was talking to me about my bra.
The only other experience that springs to mind at the moment is when ****** was shadowing another student at HHS my freshman year and he squeezed my ass when he was walking behind me. I didn’t do or say anything because i felt like it wasn’t a big deal... maybe even a compliment at the time, even though I didn’t like how it made me feel."
-Anonymous, Hudson High School Graduate, Class of 2014
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"When my friend and I participated in the LGBT day of silence, we showed the card that explained what we were doing to our health teacher and in front of the whole class he said 'Wow, didn't know we had a couple of lesbos in the class.'
Also, I had a teacher who would seat all of the girls he thought were hot in the first row, then the other girls behind them, and the guys in the back. Someone even said they saw a picture of a female student in his desk."
-Caroline, Hudson High School Graduate, Class of 2012
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"During my 4 years at Hudson High School I was a victim of verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual harassment. Beginning in the first month of freshman year and going well into sophomore year, I was emotionally and verbally abused by a boy who shall remain nameless. It started off as a sweet crush like holding hands in the hallway and sneaking kisses at football games. Pretty quickly however, it escalated to a very toxic relationship, something I’d never experienced before and was naive to at the time. He has called me every name under the sun: bitch, whore, slut, cunt, slag, the list goes on. It got so bad that on several occasions I tried to call the boy’s mother to tell her how awfully he’d been treating me. He would also threaten me and/or threaten to hurt himself if I didn’t reply to his text or calls, wouldn’t sext him, see him or hangout, or basically be at his beck and call. At one point he did in fact slash the entire front of his shin and send me a picture of the bloody wounded flesh to prove he had hurt himself and that it was MY fault. I tried to move on and cut this boy off, I even started dating somebody else, but it all still continued. He manipulated my emotions, trying to get me to cheat on my new boyfriend with him, and he drove a wedge between me and my best lifelong friend. I built up my will power and ignored his harassing texts and calls for years. It was hard, but it gave me strength and taught me self respect.
-In a different situation, a little bit later in high school, somebody told the baseball team private information about me which they laughed over and spread around the school. To them it was funny, but to me it was sexual harassment. Whether they meant to be mean or not, nothing is more embarrassing for a high school girl than to have an entire sports team gang up and spread private information to the whole school. This embarrassment, at least in my mind, was so bad that I knew it would affect my reputation until the day I graduated and could get the hell outta there. These are just a few specific incidents which happen ON TOP OF “regular” high school bullying, as weird and hard as that is to say. I may not have always been able to stand up for myself, but that’s why I always stand up for other people. I intervened in multiple incidents of bullying and insensitive comments. In my experience, things like that probably happened around once a week on average. Hate was common at Hudson High no matter what kind.
-Anonymous HHS grad
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was called a n*gger more times than I can count.
-Anonymous HHS grad
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I personally witnessed the current orchestra teacher deliberately misgender a trans student on more than one occasion. I personally and second hand am aware of the current orchestra teacher bullying drama club students. I personally witnessed the current orchestra teacher's wife come backstage and bully drama club students. I personally witnessed the current band director's husband - who serves as either an official or unofficial assistant marching band director - make racist comments about a black student in the band AND about black students at Maple Heights HS when he was employed there. I was there when a white student called (high school student) a n*gger, and when (student) reported it, he was sent to *former principal* ( a black man) who was Asst. Principal at the time. *principal* told (student) he needed to "toughen up." Only after student's mom contacted the Superintendent was anything done, and it was minimal. I have personal knowledge of the current choir teacher bullying drama club students.
I have examples of two letters a parent sent to Brian Wilch documenting bullying and mistreatment that were being done to her daughter and other students which he ignored. I have the initial letter and her follow up.
-Anonymous, former Hudson High School teacher
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When I came out I had a lot of problems in my friend group. When I went to my math teacher in tears, he told me I was taking the situation too personally.
-anonymous, Graduate of 2012
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I ended up "telling on" some students that called me fat and told me to kill myself. The gym teacher told me to "grow a pair."
-anonymous HHS grad
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My boyfriend broke up with me but then started telling people I had an STD. When I went to the counselor, she told me "kids will say what they want. Don't take offense."
-anonymous HHS grad
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was very addicted to self harm. Of course I initially avoided help, but eventually I was summoned to the school counselor. I talked about my attempts at suicide, but I was told that the school couldn't do anything to stop the group of girls that were encouraging me to end my life. Thankfully I received help through my doctor, but going back to school with all of those rumors was a nightmare.
-Cassie Downie, Hudson High School Graduate 2014
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hudson High School often promotes "see something, say something." And under Ohio law, teachers are required to attend training involving harassment prevention. So why were these students ignored? Why were we left to suffer in silence? Why was the priority maintaining a perfect reputation rather than help the victims?
According to updated studies conducted in 2019, 1 in 5 students aged 12-18 experience bullying or harassment in some form. People of color and LGBTQ individuals are the most targeted groups.
Another common incident highlighted in students' experiences at HHS is sexual harassment. If you look into statistics on this, NEARLY HALF of students in grades 7-12 reported facing sexual harassment in school. So why did 79% of schools with the same grades report NO incidents of rape or sexual harassment?
Each state has different laws, but here are some concerning points for Ohio. The Ohio Anti-Bullying Laws and Regulations...
-DO NOT include protections for specific minority groups.
-DO NOT cover cyberbullying that occurs off of school grounds.
-DO NOT encourage OR require districts to provide safeguards or mental health supports for students involved with bullying.
Are you angry yet? Maybe you're thinking "What can we do?"
In all honesty, I've felt a bit helpless before all of this. But upon communicating with people and exchanging compassion with one another, it seems there will be strength in numbers. Moving forward, I'd like us to follow the HHS Marching band motto: "LOUD IS GOOD." We need to make noise. We need to crack this wide open and stop living in fear from our traumatic time at that school. I would love to hear your thoughts on what we can do next. One anonymous student above also shared her letter that she wrote to the school, and she highlighted the importance giving all students equal opportunity to learn about acceptance and build tools that are applicable after graduation. Another student discussed with me the problems associated with anti-harassment assemblies that were conducted during our time at HHS; specifically, she reminded me of the "Sexting" assemblies, which was meant to educate us on the danger of sending nude photos. However, she pointed out that those assemblies focused on teaching females not to send nudes. There was no discussion revolving the notion that people should not be coercing those females to send private photos. In these instances, the reality is shown that HHS goes through the motions of training staff, but there is rarely proper execution when real incidents surface.
We want the entire school system in Hudson to not only talk the talk, but walk the walk. It's time to create a new normal for the future students. We want them to have a safe and comfortable learning environment when so many of us did not.
Below I am sharing multiple links to resources. I'm adding contact information for the Ohio Department of Education, for the Hudson City School Board, and much more. I have started compiling letters that I'd like to send to the correct people, and plan on sharing them with you in the future. But for now, please share and check out the information down below. If you're a parent, you should be able to fight for your child. If you're a student, you should not have to suffer in silence.
*Link to resources for what you can do in the case of bullying at school:
*As the above website recommends reaching out to the school in question's superintendent, here is the contact information for Phil Herman:
330-653-1200 ext 1216
hermanp@hudson.edu
www.hudson.k12.oh.us/superintendent
*Here is the contact information for the Hudson Board of Education:
*Or you can reach out to The Ohio Department of Education (I have specifically linked the contact page):
*Here is the link to the U.S. Board of Education, Office for Civil Rights. This is in the case of a school not properly handling claims of harassment or racial profiling:
*Ohio Anti-Bullying Laws & Policies:
IMPORTANT PETITIONS TO SIGN
DEFUND THE POLICE:
SOURCES
-Bullying statistics:
-Sexual harassment statistics and information:
-Picture source: https://hudsonexplorersathletics.com/