Cheerleader Sues Over Facebook Privacy Invasion

You have to figure out if you don't want other people to see it don't post it anywhere on the internet or someone will find it.

There's another unwritten rule. If you don't want someone to see your facebook page...........DON"T GIVE THEM YOUR PASSWORD!

From what I read on another news source, the comments were not in a private message, but on her "wall", where all her "friends" could read them (and that is how it was reported to the school). Even without the password, it is fairly easy to get a view of someone's "wall" or "status" even if they limit it to friends. Not only did it cross the line to demand her password, it was unnecessary if all they wanted to do was view the comments.

She was weak, and caved under nothing but verbal pressure. A shallow student who was so threatened by losing a little spot on a cheerleading team that her backbone turned to Jello. "Just a kid"? Screw that.

I faced a MUCH worse situation when I was even younger than her. I was 12 years old.

A very popular girl brought a knife (a serious knife, not a kitchen knife) to school, with an intent to use it- and was supported by all of her friends. I was told that I would be seriously injured if I said a word. Yet, I told a teacher, and was given death threats, beat up, and shoved into locker. If I had caved the way this cheerleader did (and no one threatened to kill her or hurt her), someone would have *died* because I didn't speak out.

I eventually had to leave the school, because I was so hated by the clique of people that wanted the knife to be used on certain people in the school. But it was the right thing to do.

Being a kid is not an excuse for doing something wrong. You can't just give in and cave because someone wants you to. Even in high school, you need to be strong. By being strong, I saved many people's lives, even at great personal cost.

This girl couldn't even handle verbal insults, and caved. With what I went through, including personal injury (which she didn't), I stayed strong. At 12 years old, when I thought someone might actually kill me for doing the right thing.

I was just a child, and I did the right thing despite injury to myself. This girl is in high school, and gave in to a little verbal harrassment. There is no reason she couldn't survive a little verbal pressure.

She deserves everything she got by caving. I was 6 years younger than her, and I was physically beaten because of my iron will and what I believe in.

If you're a sheep, and can't survive words, I have no sympathy. None.

Unfortunately the courts wobble all over on matters of the constitutional rights of minor children in public school settings. Irrespective of that, and I believe a quote from a Supreme Court justice, "a student doesn't check his rights at the schoolhouse door."

The girl had every expectation of privacy in the non-public portion of facebook, or in her e-mail or snail mail. She also had a right to have whatever opinions she held.

The rationale behind certain harrassment legislation is that sometimes people find themselves in a role where they can be coerced by someone with much greater perceived power. This is true even if the perception of power or authority is actually in error, because it is real for the person being coerced.

If this is true for adults in an adult setting, it is DOUBLY true for children when dealing with authority figures such as older relatives, teachers and law enforcement officers or quasi-officers.

I don't blame a young girl for succumbing to what appears to be heavy-duty coercion from her coach. It should not be necessary for people to have the kind of rare heroic strength of personality and character to rear back and refuse outrageous requests. That some of us would have told the coach to take a hike, does not mean that she is blameworthy for not doing so, or somehow deserves all the consequences that followed from her having given in under duress. [Also, in the social life and context of a teenager, things that seem silly to the rest of us as adults, are not silly. It is easy for mature adults to say that cheerleading is fluff, and the threat of being kicked off the team is negligible. But that would be illegitimate.]

The reason we have a legal framework around natural and constitutional rights [which, by the way, are RIGHTS and NOT privileges] is so in the ordinary course of life we don't have to go eyeball-to-eyeball to see who will blink or back down first.

I hope she knocks all the irresponsible and authority-abusing school officials down like tenpins.

Whatever happened to our 1st amendment right to speech? Whatever happened to "sticks and stones may break my bones?" Whatever happend to common sense? Now I hear that kid's textbooks are changing words like "Founding Fathers" to "The Founders". Okay, they WERE all men. Get over it. And Congressman and Congresswoman to "member of congress." Shades of Fahrenheit 451 where political correctness was introduced!!!

My mother told me a long time ago, don't get mad, get even. that;s a good rule, and it works.

EXACTLY.

"Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me".

We all learned this in pre-school. Maybe this girl should still be there, if she hasn't learned that basic lesson.

Ya'll need to read my post. If I could do that at 12 years old and be physically beaten because I refused to cave, a high schooler can withstand a little pressure from school officials. Worst case, she'd have to find a different activity. And as soon as she brought them to court for beign kicked off for that reason, she'd be right back on the team.

Kids today are weak followers.

MYSPACE > facebook!

Teachers/Coaches seem to forget that they aren't our parents. If a student feels that a teacher is going over bored it's okay to say no. I think they need to be reminded they are there for our education only. And that when the bell rings or practice is over they have nothing else to do with the students.

Mandie,
Sorry about your situation with the knife, but I don't see how this compares. This is about Freedom of Speech and privacy, not a direct threat or carrying a concealed weapon with the intent to do bodily harm. I hate to say it, but if you knew about the knife and DID NOT report it and someone got hurt, you may have been in trouble too. This student was merely griping in emails about another cheerleader and apparently her cheer coach; not a life threatening situation. Had she been making threats it might have been different situation. As far as I can tell from this story, she didn't make any physical threats, so the school officials did not have a right to invade her privacy.

My mother always told me don.t get mad, get even. good rule.

More parents should care as much as the coach. Kids don't need, and can't handle privacy at this age and only abuse it like they abuse their minds and bodys. They just don't know better yet

My Mother always taught me, don't get mad , get even, it works. try it.

Also, I had NO faculty or friends that would protect me from this. I'm just saying that if a 6th grader can have that kind of an iron will and withstand physical abuse, a high schooler has no excuse for caving in because of a little verbal pressure. There are more important things than being a cheerleader.

I honestly think that cheerleader went a bit far by sueing the coach filing as her parents. And I also think that it was unusual for a coach to force the girl to give the girl's facebook info. I'd sue her too! d: