Predators should not reign supreme

Nov 29, 2017 Letters

Dear Editor,
It is with a saddened heart I write this letter to show support to all the young ladies who have been preyed upon and traumatized by Mr. Coen Jackson, of the Bishops’ High School (BHS) teaching faculty.
Since this incident has been publicized, I have heard several disturbing accounts of how Mr. Jackson chose to interact with some of his students, such as sexualised lessons, sexual physical gestures, contacting them on their cell phones, inviting some of them to his home and even touching them.
This is a man who was entrusted with not only educating, but also protecting our young children. The time for ‘taking it easy’ on predators must stop and a lesson must be taught to all those who condoned such behaviour.
Other predators need to be put on notice that they will no longer be able to operate in the shadows, without consequences.
Suspected predators like Mr. Jackson should not be able to reign supreme in the education system. All teachers must be held accountable to the citizens of the nation who entrust their offspring to their daily care for significant portion of the children’s lives.
It sickens me that this man has had many other cases of misconduct across many teaching institutions go unnoticed, casually treated or swept under the rug for so long. The revelations that the headmistress of the BHS thought it fit to berate her students in the face of such allegations against one of her staff shows a severe lack of judgement.
Regardless of how the girls of the school behave around other males in the school, it is not right for any teacher to take advantage of these young, impressionable minds.
We expect our teachers to be held to a much higher moral standard and know right from wrong. The first reaction of the school administration should have been to encourage a safe environment for the affected young women to come forward and confirm or deny these allegations, not use intimidation tactics that would most likely force many of them to remain silent for fear of being ostracized or ridiculed.
I am calling on the Bishops’ High School Old Students Association (BHSOSA) to publicly voice their concerns over this matter and how it was handled by the School’s Administration. Our students need to know we have their backs and will seek justice whenever the system fails them.
Student welfare oversight is now more important than before. If the schools cannot be trusted to put their students’ wellbeing over their reputation and take action in these matters, then the Ministry of Education and Social Protection need to intervene in some way to ensure that predators in the school system are identified and removed by the power of the law.
Our girls must feel free to raise these issues with someone who will listen and investigate for the truth, not criticize and protect the alleged perpetrators without properly investigating similar accusations of sexual misconduct.
Our schools can no longer be ‘slack’ and ‘loose’ when it comes to protecting our child’s right to a fair education in a safe environment. I show my support for these young women across all the schools who have been targeted by Mr. Jackson and want justice to prevail.
Respectfully yours,
Noel Goodman (BHS 2002)

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