A cheerleader has filed a lawsuit for conspiracy and discrimination, claiming officials covered up an episode of teammates filming her in the shower.
The world we live in is ever-changing and certainly has evolved in the last few years with regard to technology and how adolescents and young adults spend their time. The world is more interconnected than ever, with news traveling quickly, allowing for millions to access the same data simultaneously. When used to inform and share resourceful information, social media can be great. However, there are many ways in which these sites have the potential to negatively impact society when used improperly. Snapchat is a good example of one such site, where before just a few days ago, kids were sending nude pictures to each other, knowing these would be deleted quickly (if one doesn’t screenshot). While many sites have security filters in place in an attempt to weed out inappropriate exchanges, guarding against discrimination or other defamatory issues, as with anything else, these are imperfect.
A one-time cheerleader has filed a discrimination lawsuit against her former high school, head coach, and school officials, claiming the school tried to cover up an episode in which her fellow cheerleaders filmed and snapped pictures of her in the shower at a cheerleading camp. The teammates passed around the footage and later posted the video to Snapchat. They made degrading comments about her body, saying hurtful things about what the opposite sex would think. Rather than helping the victim and reprimanding the girls, her head coach, Brittny Saavedra, allegedly told her she needed to apologize to her teammates for overreacting. Saavedra didn’t want there to be any tension in the group while on the trip. The coach even threatened her with having to run extra laps if she didn’t do so. Another coach, who witnessed the conversation, told her to grow up and get over it, and she was told not to let hotel security know about the episode.
Once back home, the girl reported the issue her parents and they immediately reported it to law enforcement who took the matter very seriously. Police officers attempted to interview Saavedra, but the woman said the girl had made everything up, there was no such video, and refused to cooperate. When officers reached out to the school, administrators didn’t take the matter seriously, either, refusing to divulge any information. Instead, the girl was suspended from the team and told she could not participate in any of the cheerleading activities. Her younger brother, also a student at the school, experienced harrassment from his classmates, as did one of the girl’s close friends. Her family tried to transfer their two children to another high school, but officials would not sign the transfer paperwork until the family agreed to absolve them of any responsibility. By way of their attorney, they were eventually able to get the transfer approved, and they are now seeking compensatory and punitive damage for conspiracy and discrimination.
Snapchat, owned by Snap Inc., recently banned the sending of any racy content in a move to attract more investors and to settle a case in which a minor reported having witnessed inappropriate content. His mother sued claiming the site should have the proper warnings in place if such content is going to be accessible to underage users. There has been some retaliation from those who have secured their Snapchat followers through the use of this content, but the decision may save others from experiencing the same humiliation the high school cheerleader and her family endured.
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Onetime cheerleader sues, saying school officials ignored harassment from girls on her team
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