When most of us think back to the time we spent in school, we have fond memories and we tend to look at the glass as being half full. We might even consider it to be the happiest time of our lives. When you stop to think about it a little longer, however, you might come to realize that there were a lot of stressful situations associated with our school years as well. This included having to take tests and at times, not doing as well on them as we would’ve liked. It also, at times, involved some type of bullying. This is been a problem for years and it continues to be an issue.
If there is one thing that a bully needs, it is somebody to stand in their corner and be their advocate. In many cases, a child that is the victim of a bully is going to be beaten down to the point where they will not feel capable of defending themselves. That is especially true when you have special needs, such as a girl by the name of Desiree Andrews. She has Down syndrome and she has been targeted by bullies during her life. When she was 14 years old, she was attending Lincoln middle school and became a cheerleader. It was a dream come true and something she wanted to do since she saw a girl with down syndrome on Glee become a cheerleader.
It is been a real confidence booster for her but unfortunately, some of the children who were attending a game started to tease and mock her rather than standing behind her for her courage. She’s a strong girl, however, and tried to ignore what was happening but it was difficult. Her father was angry over the situation and was ready to step up to the plate.
That is when three of the athletes, Chase Vasquez, Scooter Terrien, and Miles Rodriguez decided to do the right thing and take action. They stepped forward to help and the game came to a stop. A timeout was called and they walked off the court. Since that happened, they will continue to be her advocate, anytime they hear that there is trouble.