A group of students at a New Hampshire high school faced disciplinary action after some said they created Pokémon-style trading cards with images of female students on them, without their consent, and used them to rate the teen girls. The alleged incident occurred with students at Bedford High School and has many students, parents, and school staff upset.
The administration, however, claims it had trouble pinning down any offenders and couldn't arbitrarily dole out punishments. The situation inspired a petition on change.org demanding a move by the district, and it has garnered nearly 5,000 signatures. But in the latest update, the district says no one broke any laws.
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The cards allegedly have circulated among Bedford High students in the past few weeks.
School administrators contacted parents to inform them of a situation involving Pokémon cards with female students' images on them, according to a report from NBC 10 Boston. The warning said the cards featured primarily images of the chests and backsides of 11th- and 12th-grade girls.
An anonymous student told the news station the cards had been circulating for a while and called it "disgusting." "They were, like, rating them. From 0 to 10, and just rating them, 'bad or not bad,'" the student said.
The district reportedly planned to meet with those involved and punish them.
According to a letter to parents obtained by CNN, the Bedford School District said it would meet with students involved "with this behavior" and their parents and that they could anticipate "Saturday School, in-suspension, or out-of-school suspension."
The letter stated that some students admitted to involvement, and some helped identify other alleged participants.
"As of right now, we know two students received images and student reports point to three to five students sharing them," the letter noted.
As Superintendent Michael Fournier told WMUR, "This is not 'boys shall be boys.' This is just being respectful of one another, respectful of women and girls, and that we just need to treat each other as we would want to be treated. This is not just a school issue, it's a community issue, it's a home issue. We all need to come together and give the same message to these kids, so they can learn, and the next generation doesn't make the same mistakes."
The cards created outrage among students who wanted action.
Kristen Caldwell, a Bedford High senior, created a petition to get the administration moving toward punishing the alleged offenders that reads in part:
“The young women attending Bedford High School deserve justice. These shameful young boys are treating their fellow peers as sex objects. How would you feel if your daughters privacy was invaded without her knowledge? How would you feel if you found a trading card, containing your daughters sexual body parts, name, and a rating on her looks, and were informed it was made by a group of her peers in a place where she is supposed to feel safe and protected? A place that you sent her? What has school turned into for these young women? We are not a toy for your son to play with, nor a piece of paper that can be traded like a Pokémon card.”
Petition signers commented with words of support.
"i'm a female upperclassmen and this information is so disgusting to me, to all women. we aren't objects that are there for you to grade, decide what our worth is based on the way our bodies look," one student wrote. "i'm so disappointed to call the boys who did this my peers. school should be an environment where women and girls feel safe, this kind of behavior does the opposite."
"Watch it be our fault for wearing 'promiscuous' clothing. Is this what our generation has come to?" a student warned.
"anyone who says "boys will be boys" about this situation needs to grow tf up. women should not have to get dressed for school worrying about if photos will be taken of them. women are not objects to be rated," another person wrote. "letting them stay just proves bedford cares more about sports than the safety of women. my heart goes out to everyone affected."
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The school's principal, Bob Jozokos, gave his 'final update' on the situation.
Investigators determined none of the photos allegedly used on the trading cards was taken on campus, only one was not a selfie, and violate New Hampshire law, Jozokos said Wednesday, according to WMUR.
He said the district will handle all punishments privately.
