One day last week at school Jessie Sansone's 4-year-old daughter drew a picture of a man with a gun. The teacher didn't like it, so she called Family and Social Services. If you think that's an outrageous overreaction, just wait.
According to the Calgary Herald, when Jessie went to pick up his daughter and his other children at the end of the day, he was handcuffed, arrested, and strip searched, as they looked for this gun. They did actually find one after they went and searched the family's home in Ontario ... only it turned out to be a toy. Yes, the only gun in the entire house was a toy gun.
Unbelievable.
It's outrageous on so many fronts, the first of which is that it was a complete violation of civil liberties even if the gun had been real. It's not illegal to have a gun in one's home. Maybe her dad is a hunter; maybe it's for protection and licensed. She didn't draw anyone shooting someone dead or committing another crime; she just drew a man with a gun. According to the Toronto Sun, the girl even told authorities it depicted her dad "getting the bad guys and monsters."
As I read various reports about the incident, I kept waiting for there to be more to this story, but nope -- it was all about this one drawing. For that, this man was treated like a criminal, and his pregnant wife and four children were dragged into the whole mess as well, as they had to go to the station for questioning. How incredibly confusing for those children.
It's outrageous that the school and social workers were so quick to involve police. How about calling in the parents, voicing concern, and hearing what they had to say first? My son has drawn a lot of crazy things in his school days, and we certainly don't have rocket launchers or nunchucks lying about anywhere but his imagination. If parents can arrested for what their children draw, we all should be scared.
And what a way to encourage creativity and a passion for self expression in preschoolers: arrest their parents if you don't like what they draw. The 4-year-old's words to her father after he was released were heartbreaking, "Daddy, are you mad at me?"
Yes, protecting our children must be our first priority, but this is just an abuse of power. It serves as a frightening example of over-protection that certainly did much more harm than good.
Do you find this father's arrest outrageous? What things have your children drawn that authorities might question?
Image via albastrica mititica/Flickr
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Comments 544
I do declare SOME teachers are to busy trying to determine what's going on in their students lives outside of the classroom setting and not taking the time to actually teach them. At least, that was the case with one of my son's teachers. I got tired of her bull and what she was doing to our son and our family, that I flat out told her to call DSS if she felt she needed to. I've been falsely accused due to ex-friends trying to gain revenge, so DSS investigations don't scare me. Of course, I'm not doing anything that they can't see at any time. I've told them our doors are always open to them.
Kids have a very vivid imagination. Kids also have a tendency to only tell half the facts or get facts mixed up, and in today's society that tends to cause adults to have such a negative imagination that they jump the gun as well. Plus a lot of kids are learning that lying and getting DSS involved in their lives "puts them on easy street for a while." In my book, it didn't change a thing because I knew I didn't have anything to hide. It doesn't mean it's not stressful or annoying. Yes, it does make a parent question themselves as well.
OMG, that is a MAJOR overreaction. That teacher needs to be suspended or something. I get the 'better safe than sorry' thing, but how traumatizing for that family, and all over a simple drawing a young child drew. My children have never drawn anything that warranted a discussion, but I was a bit bothered a couple yrs ago when my then-2nd grader came home from school with a big pile of birthday cards his classmates drew for him. One was a friend of his, (a neighbor boy) and he drew a picture of himself and my son on the top of a hill, both holding guns. I kinda freaked out about it, and may have slightly overreacted at the moment, but I didn't notify authorities. I spoke to a neighbor who knew his family well, and she spoke to the boy about it. I honestly can't even remember what he said about the drawing, but it wasn't a big deal at all.... A child simply drawing a picture, using their imagination, as was the case for this Kindergartener. That poor family, that's just awful.
Wow, Canada is a bit effed in the head to arresst a man over a drawing.
Wow. overreaction!
buffalove23
Obviously the teacher or social services should have questioned the child and the father and other family members before arresting him... seems a little out there... that said...to every one of you a holes who is constantly critisizing the US because of Obama or our justice system or whatever other bs you find to critisize, be thankful this is not something that would have happened here, simply because no way would he have been arrested without an investigation of some sort first in the US, we are too careful of criminals rights... just saying