From E-Hell blog: Cheeseburger Incitement

[Mrs. Pilgrim]

Okay...

    One of my mother’s friends’ daughters (”Maggie”) went to sleep-away camp this summer - she is 11, maybe 12.  While she was there, a terrible incident occurred wherein she said something to offend some of the other campers in her cabin.  A handful of these girls waited until lights out, then attacked Maggie.  Some of them held her down; they bound her wrists with duct tape, taped her mouth with duct tape, and held her nose shut.  The excuse the counselors gave for not intervening was that they “weren’t sure if the girls were laughing or screaming”.  Are you serious?  As a counselor, isn’t it your duty to CHECK AND MAKE SURE?  What are you getting paid for?!

    What did Maggie say that was so offensive to get her terrorized by a group of tween girls?  “I like cheeseburgers better,” in response to a discussion at dinner.  The camp is a Jewish camp.  Cheeseburgers aren’t Kosher.

    I’ll pause to let this all sink in.

    A non-Orthodox Jewish girl casually expressed a penchant for a non-Kosher food in the presence of Kosher-keeping peers, and their response was to practically attempt to kill her.

    I infuriates me and saddens me deeply that this sort of religious brutality is still being taught by parents.  Is this the 1500’s?  Nazi Germany?  How is this considered a viable option in today’s world, by children?

    In case you were wondering exactly what kind of parents these girls have: Maggie has been locked in her room since she got home, cries constantly, refuses to eat, and has lost ten pounds.  However, since she got home, Maggie’s mother has been inundated by phone calls from the director of the camp, on her personal cell phone, even after dinner, complaining that the parents of the other girls have been calling HIM, complaining that their daughters’ expulsion from camp has ruined THEIR lives.  Her response had essentially been, “Are you kidding?  They tried to kill my daughter; they’re lucky I’m not pressing charges.”  Eventually, she had to subtley threaten to sue the camp for negligence to get the harrassment to stop.

    Recap: Completely benign, casual comment from girl gets her attacked and smothered by her peers in some sort of misguided religious fury, is completely traumatized, and the parents of the offenders, instead of locking their daughters in their rooms until they turn forty and being grateful they’re not landing in kiddie prison, are complaining about the unfairness of their expulsion from camp.

    I don’t think it gets much worse than this, folks.  Please raise your children better. 0809-08

Now, I'll agree that there may be more to the story, and it would be a bit much to assume that this is religious bigotry without something more solid, but...ganging up to commit a potentially deadly assault?  I guarantee that there's no insult or obnoxious behavior that merits this.

Do we look at this possibly as an April Fools' gag (is the code there an indicator of the date the story was sent?), or do we shake our heads and wonder what this world is coming to?

[audrey1962]

Doesn't surprised me. I've heard of worse when there is no offense committed - some kids are just bullies.

[Sabbyfrog2]

Doesn't surprised me. I've heard of worse when there is no offense committed - some kids are just bullies.

I tend to agree. I was bullied horribly and even jumped once at school. I never even knew half the kids that did it. My mere existance was enough for this group.

Besides, even if this girl had said something truly offensive, what those girls did doesn't even come close to being a justifiable response.

[magicdomino]

This line make me suspcious that the story isn't real, or at least is exaggerated:

However, since she got home, Maggie’s mother has been inundated by phone calls from the director of the camp, on her personal cell phone, even after dinner, complaining that the parents of the other girls have been calling HIM, complaining that their daughters’ expulsion from camp has ruined THEIR lives. 

It just seems like the over-the-top detail that marks a "shenanigans" story, as if the writer couldn't leave well enough alone.  A real camp director would be too worried about a possible lawsuit to repeatedly call the victim's mother and complain.

[Nibsey]

Given what happened to phoebe price and the media attention recently I really hope it's not an april fools joke.

[Brentwood]

This line make me suspcious that the story isn't real, or at least is exaggerated:

However, since she got home, Maggie’s mother has been inundated by phone calls from the director of the camp, on her personal cell phone, even after dinner, complaining that the parents of the other girls have been calling HIM, complaining that their daughters’ expulsion from camp has ruined THEIR lives. 

It just seems like the over-the-top detail that marks a "shenanigans" story, as if the writer couldn't leave well enough alone.  A real camp director would be too worried about a possible lawsuit to repeatedly call the victim's mother and complain.

I agree. No camp director would do that.

[Deetee]

I assumed that the over-the-top story was purposely posted on April Fools Day.

[Julep]

I've got to say, if it is an April Fools joke, it's not a particularly tasteful one.

[mechtilde]

I can't imagine E-Helldame printing this as a joke.

[Rivaini]

I can't imagine E-Helldame printing this as a joke.

I agree, but I don't really understand why it's there at all. Assault is a crime, where's the etiquette connection?   

[Miss Misery]

I really hope that post was just a bad joke. 

[Vegemite Girl]

Doesn't surprised me. I've heard of worse when there is no offense committed - some kids are just bullies.

I agree. And I think people tend to make a common mistake when they assume that bullies are poor souls with low self esteem from bad/poor backgrounds. The bullies I grew up with were affluent and confident, and the bullying stemmed from what their parents drummed into them; that they were *better* than other people because of that affluence/social status.

In this case I agree the religious angle is a red herring but only because I know - again from experience - that there doesn't have to be a 'reason' and if one is given it's usually only as a way of recruiting sympathisers and other bullies.

I can also very much see the difficulty in taking this to court; unfortunately too many people don't take bullying and harrasment seriously. I can very easily see where the camp people could convince themselves that 'Maggie' was over-reacting, and I could see how they could easily convice a court of the same (especially if the attackers were 'nice white kids' of good families).

I think the real problem is that people do respond to over the top incidents/stories like this, but not to the more common, almost 'mundane' bullying that can damage a person for life.

[Precarious Armada]

POD!!!

[Fluffy Cat]

    One of my mother’s friends’ daughters

I don't know if its an April Fool's joke, but this is the part that makes me think it isn't real, even if the OP of the story believes it to be.  I could be wrong though.

[Merry Mrs Martin]

    One of my mother's Friend's daughters

I don't know if its an April Fool's joke, but this is the part that makes me think it isn't real, even if the OP of the story believes it to be.  I could be wrong though.

Almost every urban legden starts with my brother's friends cousin /My Aunt's coworkers sister or some such......Believing in bullies , believing that bullies would try to attribute their actions to some offence of the victim , believing the bullies parents would complain that the bullies were punshined I'm with it till there believe the person who expelled the bullies would call to harass the victim not so much.