Max’s mother: “Max would never start a fight. He’s the sweetest boy. I know he’s
had a hard time lately with me and his dad losing our jobs, but he still would never
start a fight with anyone. He’s a mentor to the younger boys and helps out at church.
You can ask anyone in this town.”
Justin’s father: “I can guarantee 100% that Justin would never lay a finger on
anyone unless he was really provoked. Trust me. And I know because we’ve had to
move around quite a bit in the last few years because of my job, so unfortunately,
Justin knows what it’s like to be the new kid. And I’ve watched him go through these
adjustment periods at each new school. He just lies low, and pretty soon the other
kids see what a great kid he is. So I know as a fact that Justin wouldn’t stir up
trouble. It’s really not in his nature.”
Jamie (student in English class with Max and Justin in the period right before
lunch): “I wasn’t in the cafeteria today, and I’m not friends with any of those guys,
but I’ve seen Max and his friends be mean to Justin in the hallways and in class
when the teacher isn’t looking. Not physical or anything, but they’ll like say jokes
under their breath and then laugh and stuff like that. They make him uncomfortable.”
English teacher: “To be completely honest with you, I’m not surprised that this
happened. There has been a lot of tension in the school and in the town, in general,
with the reorganization plan. A lot of people are very upset with the decisions of the
new management to fire people, and I must say that I myself am very surprised that
they’ve done this. It’s a tremendous strain on the community, and I feel for all the
boys.
Cafeteria Context:
What happened in the cafeteria?
Who said this? Explain if this source is
reliable or not and why.
