A family from Nashville say their 12-year-old daughter took her own life last week after being the target of merciless bullying at the hands of football players and cheerleaders at her school.
Tarhiya Sledge, a special-education student at JFK Middle School, committed suicide at home on November 18, sparking a police investigation and a separate internal investigation by Metro Nashville Public Schools.
Sledge's parents are now considering filing a discrimination lawsuit against the school district, alleging that administrators had been made aware of the bullying but failed to protect Tarhiya from her tormentors.
Tarhiya Sledge, a special-education student at JFK Middle School in Nashville, took her own life at home on November 18. Her parents say she had been mercilessly bullied
Mikesha and Mario Glover, pictured with Tarhiya and her baby brother, are now planning to sue the Nashville school district over the child's death
Roland Mumford, the family's attorney, told the station WKRN it has been alleged that someone had hurled a trash can at Tarhiya in one instance, while in another the child had had her hair pulled so hard that some of it had come out.
‘The mother put the JFK middle school on notice in writing, email, and in-person countless times in the last 90 days and they failed to take action,’ Mumford said.
After allegedly failing to get help for her daughter at school, MiKesha Glover was forced to pull Tarhiya out of classes in late October.
Mumford said so far, he has gathered six names of students suspected of bullying Tarhiya, among them members of the middle school's football team and cheerleading squad, and he said there may be others.
Tarhiya's mother on Friday posted a message on Facebook appealing to other parents at her late daughter's school with knowledge of bullying incidents targeting the child to come forward as witnesses.
In a follow-up post, the grieving mother, who was the one who found Tarhiya after her suicide, wrote: 'I can’t breathe, I can’t sleep, my body is aching even thinking about the torture my baby had to endure at the hands of bullies.'
A candlelight vigil was held outside JFK Middle School in Nashville on November 19 honoring Tarhiya's life
Mikesha Glover (left) wrote on Facebook that she was the one who found her daughter's body after her suicide. Her husband, Mario (right), said of Tarhiya that she loved everybody
Tarhiya was pulled out of her school in late October due to the alleged bullying
The school district said there have been two confirmed bullying incidents at the middle school so far this year and 12 allegations, but officials would not say whether any of them involved Tarhiya.
‘We were saddened to learn of the death of a student within the MNPS family. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the student. Support teams were deployed to schools affected to help students and faculty impacted by this tragic death,’ district spokesperson Sean Braisted said said in a statement to Fox 17.
The child's family said Tarhiya had attempted suicide once before, but survived.
Her stepfather, Mario Glover, said the 12-year-old was a ‘star’ who loved everybody and wanted everyone to be happy.
Tarhiya loved sports and the arts, according to her family. Her stepfather described the beaming 12-year-old as a 'star'
Tarhiya is survived by her mother, stepfather, biological father and several siblings
‘She just wanted to be accepted by everyone,’ Glover said. ‘The ones who hurt her the most was [sic] the main ones she was calling friends.’
Tarhiya loved sports and the arts, and was part of the dance ministry at Celebration of Life Church, where she performed as a mime.
Anestra Hillsman, who runs the ministry, told the station WSMV that she had given Tarhiya a starring role in a recent dance recital.
'I gave Tarhiya a lead part, because I saw her passion,' she said. 'It was like God showed me. I don’t know why people were so mean to her. I don’t know why she deserved that.'
An emotional candlelight vigil was held in Tarhiya's honor outside her school on November 19, followed by a funeral service on Saturday. She is survived by her parents, stepfather and multiple siblings.
For confidential support call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255
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