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| Karen Klein receives check for $ 703, 833.00 |
Time Magazine has ranked it third on their list of 2012 viral videos.
Karen Klein, the 68-year old Greece, NY bus monitor who was bullied by kids on her schoolbus, became an overnight celebrity.
Her story made international headlines.
People from all over the U.S., as well as different parts of the world made donations.
Just a couple of months later, Klein was posing for the cameras holding a check for $ 703,833.00.
When asked what she would do with all that money, Klein said one of the first things she would do was pay off her daughter Amanda Romig's home mortgage.
Soon after, CNN's Anderson Cooper sent Karen Klein 10 tickets to Disney World.
Country singer Tim McGraw's staff contacted Klein to tell her that the star wanted to personally meet Klein.
All this while Rochester, NY news media set up camp outside Klein's home.
For days they seemed to film Klein's every move.
All the while, the real issue -- BULLYING, was forgotten amid the media frenzy and the bright lights of news cameras wielded by paparazzi-like camera crews and reporters who spun the story every which way they could, exploiting it and sensationalizing it for ratings.
Supposedly Klein took part of the money she received in donations to start the Karen Klein Anti-Bullying Foundation.
Which is why I ask, why hasn't the foundation spoken out about a very disturbing racist bullying video made in Greece, NY by Shawn Petrilli, Nick Robare and Amanda Farabella?
The video features the three teens referring to Alex, an African-Ametican teen, as a "nigger", while burning a hoodie sweatshirt that was given to Alex by Noel Parcells, his friend before she and her little sister Mia were killed by her father in a murder-suicide.
The video which you can see below, begins with Shawn Petrilli, of 100 Whitman Rd. in Greece, NY, looking into the camera and saying "Hope you like your fucking hoodie you nigger."
At one point one of the teens says he is going to pee on the hoodie while at another point in the video, one of the teens lights a cigarette on the burning hoodie.
I broke this story here on my blog.
Rochester, NY news media outlets have completely refused to report on this story.
I have personally reached out to the Karen Klein Foundation at least twice and left messages after listening to a voice recording by Klein's daughter, Amanda Romig who asks callers to leave a message which will be returned.
UPDATE: Amanda Romig finally returned my calls, and in fact after speaking to her once, I called her to ask her if she or someone from the Karen Klein 'Anti-Bullying' Foundation could support a March we are holding denouncing the racist bullying video, or at the very least, attend a press conference we are holding.
Listen to the conversation as Amanda Romig gets angry, saying "You woke me up from a nap."
Click Play to watch video
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