Virginia Students Stage Walkout to Protest District's Handling of Sexual Assault
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Students at schools across Loudoun County, Virginia walked out of classes Tuesday in support of sexual assault victims, following two recent incidents at schools in the district that prompted outrage from local parents and conservatives nationwide.
A 14-year old student was found guilty Monday of sexually assaulting a female student in a Loudoun County school bathroom in May, and faces another charge for sexual battery at a different school earlier this month. The assailant is reportedly a boy who was wearing a skirt during the assault; some reports from right-rated media have described the assailant as transgender or gender fluid. The victim's father, Scott Smith, accuses school and district officials of denying knowledge of the incident despite ongoing investigations and framing him as a political extremist for trying to speak out about it.
Right-rated news outlets have covered the story frequently and with prominence, often highlighting it on their homepages. Left- and center-rated outlets have covered the story far less overall. In coverage of the walk out, right-rated outlets reported that the assailant was found guilty by a judge on Monday. Left- and center-rated outlets did not mention that and described the assault as alleged. Voices on the right argue that coverage of the story and the political reaction to it are an example of media bias and negligence from liberals and Democrats.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
Loudoun County students walk out to protest school district’s handling of alleged sexual assaultsStudents at several Loudoun County Public Schools held 10-minute walkouts Tuesday morning to demand the county protect students from sexual assault and to declare solidarity with survivors.
At Broad Run High School in Ashburn, dozens of students walked out of their classrooms midmorning to demand the county make the public schools safer spaces. “We deserve to be safe,” one student standing in front of the main entrance shouted.
“Loudoun County protects rapists,” a group of students chanted for several minutes in protest of how the county handled two sexual assault...
From the Center
Loudoun County students walk out in solidarity with victim of alleged sexual assaultStudents walked out of classes at schools across Loudoun County, Va., on Tuesday in solidarity with victims of sexual assault in response to two recent incidents in the school district, Fox 5 D.C. reported.
On Monday, a judge found a teenage suspect guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in a bathroom at Stone Bridge High School in Ashburn in May, according to The Washington Post.
The same perpetrator allegedly assaulted a student at Broad Run High School in Ashburn on Oct. 6, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office. The judge said sentencing over the May incident would depend on the outcome...
From the Right
Dozens of Loudoun County students stage walkout over sexual assault by boy in girls' bathroomStudents in Loudoun County, Virginia, staged a walkout in protest of recent sexual assault cases at the public school system and to show solidarity with victims of such abuses.
"Students who choose to participate will not be penalized for their participation; however, we do ask that students who participate do so peacefully, without signage, and in accordance with the Students Rights and Responsibilities we all reviewed and signed at the beginning of the year," said Michelle Luttrell, the principal at Loudoun County High School, according to WUSA.
Students at Stone Bridge, Broad Run, Riverside...
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