VIRAL: Karen Klein Gets Bullied by Middleschoolers with Insults and Foul Language
The internet community is outraged by a video clip showing middle schoolers as they verbally abuse an elder woman on the bus. In a media interview, victim Karen Klein revealed it was not the first time the kids had done that to her.
[Foul language alert: The video, featured below, contains foul language, and it has been known to upset people.]
Bus Monitor: 'I tried to ignore it'
Patrice Walsh, a reporter at 13WHAM interviewed Klein, who said the incident took place on June 18.
Karen Klein, 68, works as a bus monitor at Greece Bus. She told Walsh she tried to ignore the students taunting her, but they kept insulting her.
A few moments into the clip below, Klein is seen wiping off tears, presumably affected by the vicious words coming from the children.
"I tried to ignore it...I didn't hear some stuff and tried to shut them out," Klein told Walsh.
While Klein did not hear everything, she heard a statement that must have been the worst of all.
Klein recalled one of the kids saying she "didn't have a family because they all killed themselves because they didn't want to be near you."
Walsh reported Klein's oldest son died of suicide a decade ago.
Klein: 'Not the first time'
Klein has been with Greece Bus for 23 years, according to WHEC-TV. She has only been a bus monitor for three years.
In an interview with YNN, Klein said the same 7th and 8th grader kids have been verbally attacking her the past couple of months, but they were at their worst in the recent incident.
Asked to describe other passengers on the bus, Klein said there were about 30 other students, but the kids just ignored the bullies.
Klein said she recalls one of the students hitting her in her seat once. After watching the clip, she saw that she was hit twice.
"I only felt him hit me once and it wasn't hard but on the film it was more than once," Klein said.
Vacation for Karen Klein, Fundraiser Draws $30,000 from Sympathizers
After the video went viral, concerned citizen "Max S" set up a fundraiser for Klein to allow her to go on a vacation.
"As of this writing (6pm on June 20th), it's already nearing $30,000! That's nearly twice Klein's yearly income," according to a Mediaite report.
Greece police gets involved
Greece Police have reportedly spoken to four of the students involved in the incident, but no charges have been filed.
Klein has told Walsh the kids should be punished, but there has been no report of a formal complaint from her.
"I don't know if they can be charged," Klein told Walsh.
In a recent update on Twitter, Walsh said Greece Police were concerned for the safety of the students, presumably due to the reaction of those who have seen the clip and sympathized with Klein.