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The 12 year old's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

A few weeks ago the country was all up in arms about the half time show during Super Bowl XXXVIII.

Now I hear news about a sixth-grader in Ohio that started serving a three-day suspension for bringing the latest Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue to school.

This time around it was not NSYNC’s former frontman Justin Timberlake who made news, but 12 year-old Justin Reyes. He had brought the magazine into the gymnasium at Belpre Middle School before classes on February 18th. Principal Kathy Garrison cited him for violating school's policy on nonverbal harassment and possession of lewd or suggestive material, Superintendent Tim Swarr said.

Garrison ordered the 12-year-old boy to spend two days at an alternative school where students from several area districts are sent when they get into trouble. On the other hand, Swarr said Justin and his mother, Nicole Reyes, refused to accept the alternative school punishment. The penalty was then increased to three days of out-of-school suspension.

Nicole Reyes said the alternative school was too harsh a punishment. "It's not like it was Hustler, Playboy or Penthouse," she said. "The punishment doesn't fit the crime." I am sure if that was the case, the school would probably suggest the death penalty. Give me a break! Don’t these people know that this is a 12 year, and 12 year olds bodies are going through a number of physical and psychological changes? Aren’t these people educators anyways?

Swarr said he had never seen the magazine’s swimsuit edition before. "I was shocked," he said. "It doesn't belong in public schools." I am even more shocked he said that. The SI issue may not belong at the school, but this is ridicolous. My question to Mr. Swarr is; in what world do you live in? If you have never seen SI’s swimsuit issue is one thing, not knowing what it is, is preposterous. He should not be running schools. I mean, if he doesn’t know that imagine a “joint” or a “nickelbag”.

What is really sad is that the 12 year old is the only one who is actually behaving with the maturity of his age. A 12 year-old's judgment may have been incorrect, but never-the-less not to be treated as a criminal. The Principal in this case should have had better judgment by confiscating the magazine at the time and have the parents come in to get it back.

Instead, we are faced once again with a media circus over nothing. Sports Illustrated is the big winner here thanks to these two school officials and their over the top, holier than though behavior. This year’s swimsuit issue will outsell all previous for sure. I believe the magazine should give Justin Reyes a feature or at least a lifetime subscription. After all they owe him big time for this one.

The fact is that boys will be boys, believe me I was one years ago. I nabbed Playboy’s from under my parent’s bed. I even swapped them with friends at my catholic school. From time to time one of us would get caught with them and the nuns would just take them away and send us to the confessional. Times have definitely changed… and apparently for the worst.

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