Students rally behind deaf teen whose backpack was stuffed in toilet by bullies

OMAHA, Neb. — High school students in Omaha, Nebraska, are rallying behind a deaf classmate after he was the target of bullies.

Earlier this month, students at Burke High School shoved Alex Hernandez's backpack into a toilet during lunch.

"It's not OK to bully someone who is disabled, deaf or hard of hearing," Hernandez, who's been deaf since he was 1 year old, told Newsy's partners at KMTV.

According to KMTV, Hernandez left his backpack on a chair in the school cafeteria while getting some food. And when he returned, the backpack was gone.

Hernandez immediately told school administrators about the missing bag, and they found surveillance footage that showed two male students walking off with it.

Another student later found Hernandez's belongings stuffed in a school toilet.

The backpack contained some valuable items, including a battery for his cochlear implant, his debit card, school supplies and his English project.

"I was very upset because I know I work really hard on my project and homework because I just want to make my mom to be happy and know that I did a good job on the homework," Hernandez said.

Other students said they are outraged by the incident.

"It just absolutely sickened me," Burke High School student Devon Fuller said.

Some of Hernandez's friends even set up a GoFundMe page to raise money to replace his ruined belongings. They raised more than $800 in just three days.

"Due to the increase and high donations, we decided to stop the fundraiser," a student who helped organize the fundraiser tweeted. "We raised enough money for the student to replace his school supplies!"

Hernandez, who has said he wants to transfer schools, said he was grateful for the support.

"I wanted to thank all of my friends and those who wrote me for supporting me," he told KMTV. "I am very happy. It made me feel like I am not alone."

Hernandez says he wants to talk to the two students responsible and their families about doing the right thing. School officials investigating the incident issued a statement saying that the students involved "targeted an unattended backpack versus an individual student."

Cox Media Group