A school bus in Atlanta, Georgia, is seen in this stock photo. (Natalia Ganelin / Getty Images)
By Amanda Thomason September 17, 2021 at 3:03pm
Bullying has been a problem for years, with parents resorting to a variety of methods to help their kids either stop being bullied or become better people and stop bullying others.
But without involved parents or amenable children, the issue can spiral out of control — which appeared to be the case in one recent altercation in Alabama on Tuesday morning.
The incident took place in Jefferson County at around 7:18 a.m., when mom Nannatt Waldrop, 37, boarded a school bus and confronted an 11-year-old student she believed to be bullying her child, according to WMTV-TV.
The mom and student got into a fight, and as a result Waldrop was arrested and held on a $10,500 bail, which was posted within several hours. A video was recorded and shared on social media.
Waldrop has been charged with trespassing on a school bus, disorderly conduct and third-degree assault, according to a news release from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Superintendent of Jefferson County Schools, Dr. Walter Gonsoulin, released a statement following the incident.
“We are aware of the video circulating on social media of a fight that occurred on one of our school buses Tuesday morning,” Gonsoulin said, according to a Facebook post by Fred Davenport of WVTM 13 News.
“I want to be very clear: This type of behavior is unacceptable and it will not be tolerated.
“We reported the adult individual who boarded the bus to authorities, and she has since been arrested and is facing criminal charges. While this is now a law enforcement matter, let me just say what I saw on that video deeply disturbs me.
“At no point is any type of violence acceptable, especially violence against students. We have been and will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement.”
He also stated that “adults who are not school employees” are prohibited from being on the bus.
Instead of excoriating the mother, many parents have commented on the news shares of the story to voice their support of Waldrop. Some said they’d never get into a physical altercation with a minor, but that they understood the frustration and commiserated with her.
“Good for you Mama, sounds like she got on that bus to whoop tail!” Amanda Gray wrote on a post by Jonathan Hardison WBRC. “If the schools would do more to protect our kids from bullies we wouldn’t have to feel the need to handle it ourselves. We all know they don’t do jack!”
“If the school won’t protect your kids, then parents have to take matters into their own hands,” Kenneth Freeland added. “Good for her.”
“What’s her CashApp???” MB Sides wrote. “She needs bail money!”
What would you have done?
Amanda holds an MA in Rhetoric and TESOL from Cal Poly Pomona. After teaching composition and logic for several years, she’s strayed into writing full-time and especially enjoys animal-related topics.
As of January 2019, Amanda has written over 1,000 stories for The Western Journal but doesn’t really know how. Graduating from California State Polytechnic University with a MA in Rhetoric/Composition and TESOL, she wrote her thesis about metacognitive development and the skill transfer between reading and writing in freshman students.
She has a slew of interests that keep her busy, including trying out new recipes, enjoying nature, discussing ridiculous topics, reading, drawing, people watching, developing curriculum, and writing bios. Sometimes she has red hair, sometimes she has brown hair, sometimes she’s had teal hair.
With a book on productive communication strategies in the works, Amanda is also writing and illustrating some children’s books with her husband, Edward.
Location
Austin, Texas
Languages Spoken
English und ein bißchen Deutsch
Topics of Expertise
Faith, Animals, Cooking