Dear Duxbury,

Let me start this letter off by saying that I love you. I have lived in this town for my entire life and it has done a pretty good job at giving me the childhood so many dream of. However, this letter is not about the beaches that our quiet little town is known for, or the ‘amazing’ school system. This is about something much deeper than that. You see, the internet has exploded with the recent verdict on the Standford rape case. Many are overcome with anger and frustration at rapist Brock Turner for not owning up to his mistakes, myself included. I recently read an article written by a woman who raised her kids in the same town that Turner is from. In her letter she essentially describes Duxbury. The families are white, middle to upper class, republican, nationally recognized school system. The surrounding towns call their town “The Dome” because the kids are raised sheltered from the harsh realities of today. Does the “Duxbury Bubble” sound familiar? How about “Deluxebury?" The two towns similarities are striking. Additionally, there is a tremendous pressure on students to succeed and over achievers are the norm.

If you don’t believe that a kid from Duxbury could be in the exact same situation as Turner, then you do not know the real Duxbury. This is the Duxbury that when a teacher hit two students and was fired, parents and kids alike rallied in support of the teacher, threatening the schools to bring him back. And when he wasn’t brought back, they donated their money to him and his family. You see this is the real Duxbury. This is the Duxbury that will ignore acts of violence and the victims in order to support “a good guy." Wake up Duxbury, it is now your children who have been taught this since birth and will now go out into the world dripping in privilege, not having ever faced a consequence for their actions, or really understanding what consequences are, when kids are raised never having heard the word "no," they begin to think that the rules do not apply to them.

It is only a matter of time before we will have our very own Brock Turner. That is unless we make a change. And start teaching our children right from wrong, to own up to their mistakes, to learn and grow from their mistakes, and that they aren’t always right. Duxbury isn’t perfect. And neither are the children who graduate from it. So stop telling them that they are. Let’s make a change now to stop this mindset and the potential dangers involved.

Love,

One of your own