In certain authoritative regimes when citizens feel wronged by the authorities their only recourse is to speak out publicly, in the hopes that others will take up the cause. This is my polemic about Mr. Bill, the Bus Driver.
It's no secret that Henry has trouble making the bus in the morning. Many days see him running down the block, backpack and coat flying, racing to catch the bus while the kids cheer him on. He usually manages to reach the door just before the driver pulls away. Today was no different, though this morning the bus driver wouldn’t let him on. He drove down the next block, stopped at the stop sign where he could have opened the door, but didn’t. The bus, chased by Henry, then crossed busy 14th St. and headed off. Henry, through some mad racing skillz, made it to the next stop where the bus driver just shook his head and drove on. The kids on the bus were shouting and trying to get the driver to stop. They drove/ran another hundred yards, when the bus driver pulled ahead and left Henry in his exhaust. Exhausted Henry was, and returned home defeated and in tears.
The driver’s behavior was ridiculous, unsafe, and downright cruel. This driver is said to have a mean streak, evidenced by the neighborhood kids complaining, boycotting the bus, and even crying about having to ride it (I won’t name victims’ names here). I’d had enough, called the Bus Barn to register my concern, and got no satisfaction. I was lectured about Henry getting to the bus on time and how this driver says the kids love him. “He always shows me things the kids give him, nice notes and stuff,” his supervisor said. (Hmmm. Why has he felt he has to produce evidence? Is it because there have been other complaints?) I asked for his name in order to follow up further, and was told it was Bill. “Bill what?” I asked. “We don’t give out their last names.” Reminds me when the police covered their badges during the Watts riots. But I tend to be dramatic.
I believe in the public school bus system. Riding the bus is an important part of public school. It teaches socialization and allows every child access to school whether their parents can drive them or not, and is part of our tax support. Plus, I hate to join the endless morning line of SUVs with moms on cellphones, coffee in one hand, idling in front of the school drop-off zone, coddling their privileged kids who don’t want to ride the bus. (Why, yes, I do have strong feelings about that.) Not to mention it makes me late for work.
We were hoping to just get through the end of the school year and leave Mr. Bill behind, but it turns out that he’ll be Henry’s driver in middle school as well. Luckily, middle school is only a mile and a half away, so Henry can ride his bike. We’ll get studded snow wheels for the winter.
Edited to add: I know, Henry has to learn to get to the bus on time and that there are consequences to his poor decisions. I'm not condoning the bus driver "enabling" his being late. Henry will learn from this incident, but unfortunately he'll also learn that adults can be cruel.
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