Wuhan Mother Was Forced To Jump From Building After Her Child Was Hit To Death
In WuHan, China, a primary school student in Wuhan was hit and run over by a teacher’s car on the campus, resulting in the child’s death. A week later, the child’s mother jumped from the 24th floor and died instantly.
Today marks one week since the mother’s passing. During this time, we have seen an overwhelming amount of reports, whether from self-media or official media, almost everyone attributing the cause of the mother’s death to online bullying. It seems like there is an unspoken agreement to avoid discussing issues beyond online bullying.
Indeed, at first glance, it appears that the mother’s death was indeed a result of online bullying. Even her neighbor expressed, after her suicide, “She had just lost her child and now she is facing online violence.”
Everything in front of us seems to confirm that the mother’s suicide was due to online bullying. I can understand why self-media outlets focus on online bullying because unlike traditional media, they do not have the freedom of in-depth reporting (a rule set by the Chinese government a few years ago), and writing about deeper issues often carries greater risks. However, as media outlets, they have the responsibility of representing the hopes and demands of ordinary people. If the media continues to hastily attribute all the problems to online bullying, it is truly unfair to the departed mother’s soul.
Based on the interviews conducted with the mother before her death and various activities she participated in, online bullying was indeed one of the straws that broke the camel’s back, but it was not the sole reason. Alongside enduring online bullying, she also had to face the established fact that her child died after being crushed on the school campus.
We condemn online bullying, but we also need to understand the true reasons that led her to contemplate suicide and what message she intended to convey by taking her own life.
The loss of her child is a fact, her suicide is a fact, and being subjected to online bullying is also a fact. However, it is truly difficult for us to infer one fact from another. For example, it is premature to solely attribute her suicide to online bullying unless she left a suicide note.
The mother received the most criticism for hanging a banner demanding justice at the school gate. But why did she hang that banner? It was because her demands were repeatedly ignored.
The principal and vice-principal have been dismissed from their positions, and the implicated teacher has been arrested. The school has also offered compensation. So why does this mother still demand justice? Why refuse to settle? In fact, in a previous interview, she mentioned, “I don’t want a single penny from him, I just want him to publicly apologize to the whole society for what happened to my child.”
At the same time, the mother also questioned why the driver did not exit the car to check on the child and why the child was not taken to the nearest top-tier hospital after the accident. In the media’s public reports, we also saw her mention someone named Zhou Jun, who claimed to be a police officer. Instead of inquiring about the child’s condition, this person condemned her for “causing a scene at the school gate.”
Having endured the unimaginable pain of carrying a child for ten months, painstakingly raising a child, and losing that child in what should have been the safest place, it is only natural for a mother to seek answers. Yet, even this simple demand remains unfulfilled. Furthermore, during her pursuit of justice, she was accused of causing trouble. Can a mother who has just experienced the pain of losing a child be expected to endure such accusations?
The child’s family once shared an emergency medical record, and it is evident that the child suffered severe facial and head injuries. One can only imagine the despair, heartache, and overwhelming grief that a mother would feel upon seeing her child in such a state. How much hatred she must harbor towards the perpetrator and the school’s negligence.
Therefore, under these circumstances, it is not excessive for the mother to demand a public apology and mourning from the school staff, directed at the whole society. However, despite such a reasonable request, the school has been slow to take action.
In the face of such indifference, can you blame a mother for feeling hopeless?
Thus, from the very beginning, the media has skewed public opinion. Online bullying is indeed terrifying and despicable, and those who engage in it deserve severe punishment. However, using online bullying as a distraction tactic is an even greater wrongdoing. Criticizing online bullying alone without addressing the underlying issues and targeting only the easy targets is extremely unethical and does a disservice to the departed mother’s spirit.
Lastly, as an unrelated note, there is a comment from a netizen on Zhihu that due to this mother’s efforts, no cars are allowed on Wuhan’s elementary school campuses after a child’s accident, and electric bikes must be pushed in and out of the campus.
This mother is truly remarkable. If certain individuals have a conscience, they should promptly give her the justice she deserves instead of attempting to manipulate public opinion and evade responsibility.