Petition Seeks Expulsion Of NH High School Boys Who 'Rated' Girls' Bodies

BEDFORD, NH — A senior student at Bedford High School created a petition seeking the expulsion of her younger classmates who are accused of making trading cards of upperclassmen girls and rating their bodies.

The school's principal said in an email to the community last week that the students accused of taking photos of body parts of the girls without their knowledge are in danger of suspension—but according to the student and petition author Kristen Caldwell, that simply would not be enough to bring justice for the young women.

"These shameful young boys are treating their fellow peers as sex objects," Caldwell wrote in the Change.org petition's description. "How would you feel if your daughter's privacy was invaded without her knowledge? How would you feel if you found a trading card, containing your daughter's sexual body parts, name, and a rating on her looks, and were informed it was made by a group of her peers in a place where she is supposed to feel safe and protected? A place that you sent her? What has school turned into for these young women?"

Caldwell believes that school officials should permanently remove the boys involved, arguing that the damage they have done to the community is "irreversible."

"We are not a toy for your son to play with, nor a piece of paper that can be traded like a Pokémon card," Caldwell continued. "Why are issues such as these, treating women as sex objects, not being taken more seriously?"

As of early Monday afternoon, the petition has garnered 2,857 signatures with a goal of 5,000.

While the district notified Bedford police Thursday of the alleged misconduct by students, police had not yet received any images, information, or evidence of a law violation from any school staff, students, or parents as of Friday, according to the department.

"The Bedford Police Department remains ready to investigate and review any images, evidence, or information regarding allegations of violations of New Hampshire criminal law with respect [to] this matter," the department said in a statement Friday.