Kelly Guthrie Raley has been teaching for 20 years and currently educates kids at Eustis Middle School in Lake County, Florida. Just last month she was named the 2017-2018 Teacher of the Year.
The day after the horrific shooting that took place at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, she posted a rant on Facebook that has since gone viral. In the post, she talked about parental responsibility, compassion, and respect…and more than 823,000 people have “liked” the post and agreed with it, while more than 649,000 have shared it with others.
Here’s what Mrs. Raley had to say.
Okay, I’ll be the bad guy and say what no one else is brave enough to say, but wants to say. I’ll take all the criticism and attacks from everyone because you know what? I’m a TEACHER. I live this life daily. And I wouldn’t do anything else! But I also know daily I could end up in an active shooter situation.
Until we, as a country, are willing to get serious and talk about mental health issues, lack of available care for the mental health issues, lack of discipline in the home, horrendous lack of parental support when the schools are trying to control horrible behavior at school (oh no! Not MY KID. What did YOU do to cause my kid to react that way?), lack of moral values, and yes, I’ll say it-violent video games that take away all sensitivity to ANY compassion for others’ lives, as well as reality TV that makes it commonplace for people to constantly scream up in each others’ faces and not value any other person but themselves, we will have a gun problem in school. Our kids don’t understand the permanency of death anymore!!!
I grew up with guns. Everyone knows that. But you know what? My parents NEVER supported any bad behavior from me. I was terrified of doing something bad at school, as I would have not had a life until I corrected the problem and straightened my ass out. My parents invaded my life. They knew where I was ALL the time. They made me have a curfew. They made me wake them up when I got home. They made me respect their rules. They had full control of their house, and at any time could and would go through every inch of my bedroom, backpack, pockets, anything! Parents: it’s time to STEP UP! Be the parent that actually gives a crap! Be the annoying mom that pries and knows what your kid is doing. STOP being their friend. They have enough “friends” at school. Be their parent. Being the “cool mom” means not a damn thing when either your kid is dead or your kid kills other people because they were allowed to have their space and privacy in YOUR HOME. I’ll say it again. My home was filled with guns growing up. For God’s sake, my daddy was an 82nd Airborne Ranger who lost half his face serving our country. But you know what? I never dreamed of shooting anyone with his guns. I never dreamed of taking one! I was taught respect for human life, compassion, rules, common decency, and most of all, I was taught that until I moved out, my life and bedroom wasn’t mine…it was theirs. And they were going to know what was happening because they loved me and wanted the best for me.
There. Say that I’m a horrible person. I didn’t bring up gun control, and I will refuse to debate it with anyone. This post wasn’t about gun control. This was me, loving the crap out of people and wanting the best for them. This was about my school babies and knowing that God created each one for greatness, and just wanting them to reach their futures. It’s about 20 years ago this year I started my teaching career. Violence was not this bad 20 years ago. Lack of compassion wasn’t this bad 20 years ago. And God knows 20 years ago that I wasn’t afraid daily to call a parent because I KNEW that 9 out of 10 would cuss me out, tell me to go to Hell, call the news on me, call the school board on me, or post all over FaceBook about me because I called to let them know what their child chose to do at school…because they are a NORMAL kid!!!!!
Those 17 lives mattered. When are we going to take our own responsibility seriously?
What do you think?
I would have loved for my children to have been in Mrs. Raley’s class because not only is it obvious that she really cares, but also that she has an abundance of common sense, something that has been notably absent in our politically correct school systems.
I raised my kids in much the same way Mrs. Raley refers to having grown up: with rules, curfews, and consequences for their actions. My girls weren’t totally sheltered – they saw violence on television and in movies – but we discussed it. I taught them empathy for other human beings and all creatures. They too, have had access to guns, and know how to use them, but I’ve never once been worried that they’d use them on another human being for any other reason than self-defense in a life-or-death situation.
Like every other parent, I now worry every time my daughters walk out to door to attend their college classes. Because, honestly, it can happen anywhere.
But I sincerely agree with Mrs. Raley.
Guns aren’t the problem. The current culture is the problem.
What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
I rest my case, start throwing negligent parents in family lock up with the “sicko” kid. Watch the tide turn overnight.
Negligent parents yes.. maybe
but remember the government stepped in and said you cant touch em or you’ll go to jail
so what message did that send the kid ? the message it sent is, i can do what ever the fuk i want , so they are
we need to give parents the ability to discipline thier kids without the fear of CPS coming and taking them away and making the parents out to being the bad guys …
again the government knew exactly what they were doing when they removed our ability to send Jr. the right message , even if it included a size 13 tennis shoe on his ass for being disrespectful
because the government knew when these kids get out of hand , its going to be huge .. no discipline = chaos
a lot of parents feel they are between a rock and a hard place , all lil cry baby has to do is go tell teacher his ass is being beat at home , and no one cares to know why, they just can the ‘ol man for spanking him , and more than likely he deserved his ass beat
today, no consequences for bad actors , and parents afraid of government , have thier hands tied, and these kids are fully aware you cant touch em.. its just like the Pigs ..bold as fuk ’cause no one can touch em
The schools called child protective services 3 times because of my spoiled drama queen son. 3 different schools and 2 out of 3 I know for fact were woman. Then they hide behind the system to remain anonymous. Ranting in the halls, to his buddies, is overheard by the teachers and once by the school cop. OH, better safe than sorry, out they come with a cop in tow to investigate and laying down a paper trail. The schools bear some responsibility for the atmosphere they create.
I can see it now on her gravestone.
Here lies the teacher of the year 2018.
I can see it now…
“Florida Teacher Shot In Love Triangle With Staples gun”.
And now a word from our sponsors.
“….There. Say that I’m a horrible person. I didn’t bring up gun control, and I will refuse to debate it with anyone. This post wasn’t about gun control….”
But she DID bring up the mental health issue, which I believe will be the focus of this latest shooting drama.
They may have given up on gun control, and a little simple arithmetic proves it’s a futile effort, but they may be looking to lock up political enemies by playing the old commie “psychiatric help” angle.
Actually, in big cities, high school students anyway WERE like the students she is talking about (but apparently now also reside in smaller cities, suburbs and maybe even rural areas)… for financial reasons I had to take a teaching job in El Paso in 1994-95, and guess where the high-up mucky-mucks put me? In Austin HS, aka “Drive-by High” and many of my students were flat-out gang-bangers, not just the usual “class clowns” or “yakkety-yakkers” with an occasional discipline problem from a broken home, but students who threw erasers, marbles, and even “ninja stars” at me (the one who threw the ninja star that was about one inch from my left eye and cut into the blackboard was expelled, thank God). Then I had students walk out of my class just for the hell of it and there was nothing I could do because I had NO SUPPORT WHATSOEVER from the Principal, who really did not want to hire me, but was forced to. Note: this principal went to a conference in DC in March, 1995–for that one week where the assistant principals handed everything, every single one of my students behaved themselves!
This is refreshing and there is hope..
However there is a different agenda that is being played out.
we need to get back to beating our brats ..if a parent cant put the fear of god back into these kids , were all done
these kids dont respect anyone anymore because the government stepped in and said they didnt have to , because Mom and Dad cant discipline them anymore with out the treat of getting jailed for sending Jr. the right message
all these kids today know you cant touch em, what do you think that breeds..it breeds the same shit we have in DC .. no over site to kick their ass!
Never spanked any of my four sons, not one time. My sons are all highly intelligent, but when they were children, I could always outwit them, and their children are being raised the same way.
If your children adore you they will do handstands to please you. If your children do not adore you the fault has to be your own, as you started with a blank slate.
I gladly agree with you Henry, as I have great kids too
never had to raise my hand to my step Son ,or my Daughter
, but just isnt the case for others , some kids are a hand full from the womb , people like us are good parents and knew what our kids needed to flourish
not all kids are like this , sadly ..and yes alot of it probably does come from the parents ,..trust me I know some people who should never have had kids , yet here they are fking it all up for those of us who know what we are doing
but you have to agree that a government telling your kids that mom and dad cant touch you for doing wrong, sends the wrong message , a kid sees that and now believes hes the one in the drivers seat , and there is no worse an individual with no fear of reprisals, even if the reprisals are not physical punishment .. as we’ve seen in our own government
i do want to make myself clear, I dont agree with beating people to obtain compliance .. only those that have ruined this countries Republic .. now those types .. i reserve a good ass woopin for
kids need structure and discipline , it doesn’t necessarily include physical
some have the habit of runnin a muck
I see people all the time, they will go get them a dog and they will be all puffed up with pride that they have such a fine dog. After about a week, they chain it to the back porch. They will take it food and water, hopefully enough to keep it alive and if anybody shows up, well they will take them out back and show them their fine dog.
I would love to have a bird dog right now, but I won’t get one because I do not have the time to tend to it properly. My dog would have to be trained, which means a couple of hours working with it every day. And because the idea behind the training is not to force the dog to go get the bird through threat, but rather have the dog want to get the bird to please me, it would have to be in my house and a part of my life.
I did not have children to point at and say, Lookie there, that’s mine. I had children because I wanted the best company a man can have in his life, a family.
As for outside interference, I simply did not allow it. I guarded my children like I guard my rights. I would die for them. When I had to straighten out somebody for interfering with my rearing of my children, they got to watch me do it.
I taught them whatever they wanted to learn.
Each person is an individual and if you simply observe and make your children’s interests your own, while installing morality through example, well, I’ll just say, honestly, it was a lot of work, but it wasn’t hard work, as I was enjoying what I was doing.
One of them got a t-shirt one time. It said, “He’s far out, cool, he’s rad, he’s my big bad dad.”
There are no excuses I will accept. If there is an outside force that poses a threat, you destroy it or die in the attempt.
” the idea behind the training is not to force the dog to go get the bird through threat, but rather have the dog want to get the bird to please me”
absolutely
My 2 adult offspring were raised in a home with much love and respect , I believe that is why my wife and I have had few problems we couldn’t handle
we do agree, it starts at home
I just have a problem with the state or government telling me how to raise my own blood
Zacly
Government rules and regulations coupled with militant cop enforcers are why all of this is happening. Then add the pharmacy legal drug pushers that drug the kiddies with psychotropics for being normal and trying to think for themselves and bingo , or should I say BANG! All of this is a taught behavior and if you don’t comply as a kid you are drugged , and if you are not compliant as an adult you are targeted as a possible domestic terrorist. As I see things the real domestic terrorist work for the states and the federal government while they take our tax dollars and support their favorite terrorist over seas. We are for sure in deep doo doo!
“I’ll say it-violent video games that take away all sensitivity to ANY compassion for others’ lives, as well as reality TV…”
T.V. PERIOD!!!!!
THE # 1 reason we’re in this mess!