Teen’s lewd lyrics shock educators

The heavily sexualised lyrics of a song performed by a schoolgirl have left education stakeholders concerned and disappointed, with calls for schools and parents to do more to monitor students’ online activities.

In a now viral video, the girl appears in a studio performing a remix to the track Shift Yuh Drawz. The original, done by YN Alex, was uploaded several months ago, but the remix has sparked discussion online. It contains sexually suggestive lyrics centred on not needing to fully remove underwear to engage in sex. The video that was posted on TikTok has since amassed more than 547,000 views. While the girl was not wearing her school uniform in the video, Dr Rene Level, president of the National Association of Deans of Discipline, and Stewart Jacobs, president of the National Parent-Teacher Association of Jamaica, said that should not exempt one from condemnation or possible disciplinary action.

Level told THE STAR that, for her, the issue is bigger than whether the student was wearing her uniform.

“It doesn’t make a difference, people are not going to say it’s John Brown, they are going to call the school’s name,” she said. Jacobs shared a similar view, using an analogy to explain his stance.

“If she had run for a club in a different uniform and broke the world record, she would be associated with the school. The school would have gotten an accolade for it. Therefore, the misbehaviour is reciprocal.”

There were calls from social media users for the girl to be suspended. But the student defended herself. In a video uploaded to her TikTok platform, she argued that she was not wearing her school uniform in the video and, therefore, there should be no issue.

Jacobs however argued that students cannot distance themselves from their schools simply because they are not wearing their uniforms when engaging in activities online.

“So the young lady who performed with those lewd comments on social media and had it spewed all over, the consequence is very limited. She’s going to get a lot of ticks (likes), a lot of blue ticks, and she’s going to become very famous. Not because she’s not wearing her school uniform doesn’t mean that she doesn’t belong to her school,” he said.

There is speculation the girl is a budding recording artiste, and while some online users have argued that many artistes found fame when they were still in school, Jacobs opined that students who misbehave online should be punished.

“The school has a right to punish accordingly because you have tarnished the name of the school, and you have gone against the grain of the expectation of a student.”

Level suggested that administrators at the school the girl attends should reach out to her parents.

“The child will get some views and excitement, but it’s not going to look good on the school,” she said.

In the meantime, she suggests that more schools participate in workshops to teach children about the importance of their digital footprint. On the other hand, Jacobs believes much of the responsibility falls on parents.

“Bluntly, our parents have become very lazy. Our parents have become … laid-back and have allowed social media to guide their children because they, too, are hooked on it. And it’s not because they have given up, they are just very lazy.”