Child Abuse Story From Paulette

by Paulette Page Faile
(Woodstock, Georgia , USA)

I have kept this story "under wraps" for many years. But I have finally realized that I need to bring closure to what happened to me. It has affected my life since I was eight years old, which was my age when the horrible incident took place. I have suffered depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, withdrawal, and flashbacks, all these at different times of my life. And I now know, it affected my relationships, it made me terribly over-protective of my own children, and probably, because of what happened to me by a public school teacher in Akron, Ohio, I have been very defensive, without cause, and have made decisions on the basis of the abuse that was cast upon me.

I was in third grade. For no reason, my teacher decided to take me down to the boiler room, (basement) of the school, and beat me in the face, and arms, while violently yelling, and calling me names, etc. At some point, I was on the floor, begging her to stop.

While in the classroom, she was totally inappropriate in her actions. She called the white students "white trash" and the black students "black crows" and many other things to humiliate us. By today's standards, she would be guilty of inappropriate sexual actions, and contributing to the delinquency of minors. This teacher, Ms. R, was never held accountable for any of these actions. She kept on teaching, because—as the principal of the school told my mother, "Ms. R comes from a very prominent Akron family, and her brother is a county judge, it would do no good to report this to the school board."

I have carried this with me all my life, and now the story must be told, wherever I can let it be known.

Thank You for this chance.

Note to Paulette from Darlene: Paulette, I truly understand your need to name your abuser and the institution that was a party to that abuse; it goes a long way in the healing and recovery process. While I would love to provide you with uncensored opportunity to publicly expose your abusers, legal and liability issues that could affect my ability to continue my valuable work on this site have made it necessary to remove the reference to the school you attended in childhood, as well as the abusive teacher's full name. This was not done to in any way discredit you, your story, or the very real pain you suffered at the time, and well into your adulthood. I hope you understand the difficult position I'm in.

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