Parents, students at Que. high school allege incidents of sexual violence
Some parents and students at Massey-Vanier High School in Cowansville are alleging incidents of sexual violence.
The parents say they're concerned for their children's safety.
"We're here today to denounce the Eastern Townships School Board and Massey-Vanier High School-English, all the staff, from principals down to aides, for not hearing the voices of all the girls making reports of sexual assault, sexual harassment, rape and bullying," said one parent.
"Girls are reporting, nothing is being done other than taking the 'predators,' I like to call the boys that are behaving this way, into a room to talk to the girls that are being harassed," said another parent.
CTV News spoke to one student who didn't want to be on camera but said she's scared to go to school.
"There's been boys and girls who have been sexually harassed at the school (…) it's really not fair that the school is not doing anything about it," said the student.
Eastern Townships School Board President Michael Murray says they, and the police, are listening.
"We take every complaint very, very seriously," he said. "We're also collaborating with the police, who have opened a file and are conducting an investigation."
Quebec provincial police (SQ) would not comment on the investigation.
Ruba Gazal, Quebec Solidaire's education critic, says more needs to be done to protect students.
"It was important for me to be here to support the parents and children who are denouncing an unacceptable situation," she said.
Parents say it's the only school in the area, so sending their kids elsewhere is not an option.
"Nobody is getting heard from the school. We're all dismissed, just like the girls," said a parent.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING Appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.