The More Things Change...

Twenty-five years ago, school was a virtual hell for Ryan White, an HIV-positive teenager who eventually became the poster child for young people affected by the disease. He was harassed, bullied, and even refused admittance to his Indiana middle school because of his infection. How little things have changed in the Hoosier State since then. The family of an HIV-positive girl reports that she experienced such severe bullying and harassment at her Indianapolis middle school that she suffered seizures and was forced to quit attending classes. The girl's tormentors were never punished, despite numerous meetings between the girl's mother and school officials, according to a federal lawsuit filed against the school district. The girl is now being home-schooled. School district officials refused to comment on the case.