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In a world that’s often cruel and unforgiving, stories like this turn us away from our Schopenhauer-laden misanthropy. Three middle school basketball players in Kenosha, Wis. came to the aid of a special cheerleader for their Lincoln Middle School basketball team.
The cheerleader, Desiree Andrews, has Down syndrome, and when the three players — Miles Rodriguez, Scooter Terrien and Chase Vazquez — saw spectators making fun of her from the sidelines, they walked off the court to prevent the taunting.
“The kids in the audience were picking on Dee, So we all stepped forward,” Vazquez said.
Scooter Terrien added: “It’s not fair when other people get treated wrong because we’re all the same. We’re all created the same…”
The gymnasium where the middle school heroism occurred has been dubbed “Dee’s Gym,” and the story has become national news.
Desiree described their gallantry with a series of adjectives we absolutely agree with: “sweet, kind, awesome, amazing.”
Kids in middle school are often at the mercy of their peers, for good or ill. The fact that these three basketball players stepped up for Dee, despite what their friends or classmates might think, truly gives us hope about the future.
The below sort of canned sequences local news channels air can be a bit corny, but it warms our heart to think the four of them now walk to class together:
We hope some adults can learn a thing or two from these middle school kids.
[TMJ in Milwaukee; H/T USA Today]
