Humanitarian Louise Burfitt-Dons insists she is ‘shocked and appalled’ at the prospect of a father facing prosecution for confronting bullies who tormented his children.
In a heart rendering Facebook post, shared more than 200,000 times, Christopher Cooper describes how his two youngest children, Millie, 11, and Braiden, aged nine, were verbally and physically abused daily by school bullies.
Cooper, a midwife, felt he was left with ‘no other option’ than to take matters into his own hands as North Walney Primary School and police claimed nothing could be done as it was ‘outside school grounds’.
“Braiden had his arm broken and underwent surgery,” Cooper said. “On another occasion he was held in a crucifix position with his arms stretched out to the side, so another child could repeatedly punch him in the stomach.
“It was left to me to challenge him [the bully]. I told him straight to leave my kids alone or there would be consequences. I didn’t touch him, I certainly didn’t threaten him, although trust me how I didn’t do either I don’t know. The result – I am now under investigation by the police, and at risk of losing my career. What an absolute joke.”
Have we got our values back to front? asks AAB’s Louise Burfitt-Dons
Burfitt-Dons, founder of the Act Against Bullying, explains she was left stunned when reading about Cooper’s case.
“It’s like we’ve got our values back to front,” she told talkRADIO. “There are so many different terms for bullying, yet when you look for punishments there is nothing there.
“Yes, we all have learn to deal with the fact here will be some people who don’t like us but this is just thuggery.
“Unfortunately, there are many cases out there like this one.
“But the best thing that can happen to a case like this is for it to end up in the press, being debated and talked about; exactly like we’re doing today.”