Use code EmilyBaker60 at www.GreenChef.com/EmilyBaker60 to get 60% off plus free shipping! Get 20% OFF @honeylove with promo code LAWNERD at www.honeylove.com/ ! #honeylovepod #ad Visit thrivecausemetics.com/EDB for 20% off your first order.
As a former cheer coach, gymnastics coach, and dance teacher and coach, I was so burnt out from social working endless amounts of my students, which lead to conviction of a grandfather, lawsuit of a 23 year old male dance teacher who had an inappropriate relationship with his 15 year old female assistant and now owns his own studio and has no one above him to be held responsible to as dance/competitive dance does NOT have an overseeing organization in any way, shape, or form as cheer and gymnastics do, and many more instances where charges were pressed and/or separation of child to accused was achieved. I have sooo much second hand trauma from this, I do not want to return to that career. Complete life change. I am a mommy now, and my daughter is in dance at one of the studios I used to teach at and trained other teachers, and the studio owner is very much on top of everything as she also owns a preschool, and does not tolerate any bs of any kind. But I stay at every rehearsal and never leave her unattended anywhere. I go to therapy, but the reality of how prevalent S.A. is in these sports and activities, the gro.o.ming that is part of the culture, creates dancers, teachers, and parents that think this is all fine and cute and do what you got to do to for that stupid trophy and the positive opinions of three random judges, who often are not even qualified to judge certain styles and levels. @Emily D. Baker if you ever want to discuss this subject with an “expert” on it, I would more than happy to, on or off camera. My social media is the same as this on every platform. Please cover this subject. There is sooo much that is downright wrong and avoidable in these industries. I would love to create a safety and disciplinary program for competitive and recreation dance, and need more understanding of the laws and how to do this properly. I know I would have enormous support from the infinite survivors if I did so. Thank you Miss Baker.
I have never heard of a college that has done right by SA victims. They always protect their own image and therefore the perpetrator. Happened at my college and because of my job on campus I was privy to private information, and the hoops and rules bent for the perpetrator so he could continue his classes and graduate was sickening. Meanwhile multiple woman were fighting with the university just to be able to continue sharing their story and schooling. Title IX did nothing but try and silence those victims and the only reason the story came out was he eventually assaulted someone that didn’t go to our college and couldn’t be intimidated by the university higher ups. These victims deserve better than this. We all have to do better than this.
100% correct. An SA happened ON my campus and administration didn't want to have to report the incident and have it reflected in their crime stats. So they tried to make the victim report the crime to the town police station instead, so that the SA would be statistically counted towards the town's numbers, instead of "reflecting poorly" on the campus where the assault ACTUALLY occurred and where the school's private campus police were supposed to be responsible for handling and investigating.
My sister had many bad experiences at Springfield college in Massachusetts USA. 2007-2012 or so with an abusive stalking boyfriend who tried to break thru her window. The city police sent it to the bootleg broke ass campus police who failed to protect her. Fck universities. Your kids are better off going to school online I swear. These campus cops can’t do shit right.
Thank you for covering this Emily. As a former NBA pro dancer, former cheerleader and former competitive gymnast I really appreciate this! This show started off so good but as someone in the industry it's not as surprising to hear this. I'm so over a lot of reality tv and it's quite toxic to the younger generation.
@@Stormiray3 Maddy Brum's comments about "this is what Narvarro girls do - they keep it to themselves" does imply she may have a been a victim herself in the past and was at least giving Lane the best advice she legitimately thought she could - ie things will get even worse for you if you report it. If you are a 20 year old who knows that people are frequently assaulted, allegations go nowhere, and the victim usually ends up worse for trying, what would you tell a peer? Though telling a victim that she needs to talk it out with her attacker "like adults" indicates a fundamental lack of understanding of the situation, I do wonder if that is coming from Brum simply not caring or her being indoctrinated into a system that doesn't care. Sometimes when we are in a position where we lack any power, we adopted the beliefs of the system as a form of self-preservation. There is a very large-scale issue with abuse in the competitive cheer world - it is likely many Narvarro cheerleaders were victims before ever setting foot on campus. It sounds like a suit attacking the cheer program and college and that focuses on the atmosphere of abuse and permissiveness they created is what is needed in this case.
@@Lynsey17 That's a good point and when I heard about this case, I thought back to Brum's troubled background that was touched upon in one of the programs.. I only saw the series once a while ago but isn't Maddy Brum from an unstable background in Massachusetts? I seem to remember something about her having a father in prison and feeling like she was placing all her hopes and success in life on her achievements in Cheer. It's heartbreaking to think of the number of SA victims (female, male, trans or NBi) that choose to deal with their trauma internally and don't speak out because they believe that is their best or even only option.
@@maggiebeth5442 That story rings a bell - I was trying to remember is any of the people mentioned were featured on the show but it's not fresh enough. I believe the 2nd season covers both the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years due to COVID upsetting the schedule though I am not entirely sure. Either way, I know the time period this lawsuit deals with is after the 2nd season. One thing I remember from the show is in the first season Lexi was having issues with her teammates and it seemed to be at least partly bc she was choosing to socialize outside the team. Then you hear in the lawsuit they picked the rookie's roommates and were told to keep their dorm doors unlocked - it seems like there was a lot of pressure to stick with the team instead of creating a diverse social network. Seems like Lane might have been lucky to even have someone like her boyfriend who was outside the sphere of influence of the team/Navarro to disclose the SA to.
@@Lynsey17 It's really very sad when you start looking into it, particularly on the heels of the revelation that a psychotherapist S assaulted young females of the American National Gymnastics team for 18 years. While it's currently being brought to light in America, this is clearly not the only country in which this is happening (I'm speaking as a Brit that lived abroad and tries to follow international activity as widely as I can). At the moment, the US is the only country where the assaults are bravely being reported by the victims and the press is reporting on these cases. The number of worldwide victims that feel like they don't even have a voice must be heartbreaking. Your point about the system isolating the athletes is also important and thank you for making it. I remember many parents in the documentary about the gymnasts talking about not being able to contact their children. Isolation is such a classic sign of an abuser and the reality that a sporting institution creates this environment is very alarming and needs to be evaluated. I checked Maddy Brum's father's conviction after my previous comment and found that he is reportedly in prison for SA. As the daughter of a convicted rapist (that seemingly still has contact with her father), I can only imagine her views on SA are extremely abnormal. I hope she has someone she can talk to about anything that happens to her that she finds inappropriate. I'm glad EDB covered this case, she's right that it's a very important topic and we need to talk about it.
When I was in band, our “hazing” was sophomores had to wear their clothes inside out and backwards all day, and at the end of field practice that evening we had water balloons that had been refrigerated thrown at us. It was 100 outside, nobody minded the water balloons. It really was just for fun. Even our first time chaperones and new student teachers participated. We were also told if we didn’t want to do it, you were never forced or punished. A few kids didn’t participate, and that was that. It honestly was just fun! Good memories.
As someone that cheered my whole life & throughout college, & knew some of the Navarro athletes, my heart breaks for this girl. Cheer was my escape & safe space, & my coaches & teammates were my family while I was away from home. It makes me so sad that not everyone has the same amazing experience. My thoughts & prayers are with the victim - Please continue to cover this! Also yes, the toll this sport takes on the body is insane & i didn’t even realize it until I graduated & got into the “real world.” Looking back I was so unhealthy!
Depends on if the cheerleader was underage. Texas only has abuse mandated reporting laws for children. Most college students are over 18, though sometimes there are early admits or freshmen that are 17 their first few months at college. University rules and title IX are more likely to apply, though the university doesn't seem to care all that much other than the bad publicity.
This is heartbreaking to hear it is still happening, after an assault in college my daughter fell into a pattern of disordered eating which resulted in her heart stopping - they don't see how devastating SA can be
My college swim vets put itching powder on our swim towels. One guy went to the ER for it due to an allergic reaction on his testies. Our coach and administration kicked off 7 swimmers for that, 2 with full scholarships revoked, it was wild. I’d say it’s a toss up, some schools still have until the staff start taking it seriously.
It really worries me over just the past decade, how many SA cases have been brought forward regarding young athletes and those who are held accountable for their safety and health. It really seems these organizations put money and prestige ranking before the young athletes safety.
I am hoping more students/athletes will come forward - think this has been hidden for a very long time.. much like the Nassar incident and the horrid case of the Penn State Sandusky scandal
I completely agree with you. It’s absolutely horrifying, and terrible, and downright heartbreaking what these young students have been put through. This kind of horrible behavior has been going on since institutions of higher learning began, way back in the day, and it’s so sad to think of just how many people have received no support or recourse for the terrible things that have been done to them.
I mean, abuse is fundamental to the USA gymnastics program. Soviet countries were dominating in the 70s and 80s. The USA's rise to prominence in the 90's that has continued into the 2020's wasn't due to them finding a way to do it better than the Soviets - it happened because the USA imported the Soviet's abusive methods via defecting coaches. Bela and Marta Karolyi are largely responsible for that shift and are notoriously abusive. Among other things, they are known to force athletes to train and preform with serious injuries like broken bones and severely restrict their diets. The National Team Training center is at the Karolyi Ranch where many of Larry Nassar's crimes were committed. It's a place I personally would never send a child. One of the most well-known images from the '96 Atlanta Olympics is Bela Karolyi carrying Kerri Strug to the podium after she courageously competed injured in order to win her team the gold. What most reports leave out of the story is that Kerri didn't want to do her 2nd vault after seriously injuring herself on her first attempted but Bela pressured her to do it. It also wasn't necessary for the USA's women's team to win gold - it guaranteed that they couldn't be caught but they would have won either way - she didn't need to risk further injury. The USA's women's gymnastics team has not only dominated in their sport the past decade, they did it while being subjected to physical, psychological, and sexual abuse - at times in the middle of their Olympic appearances. McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and Simone Biles have all publicly come out as victims of Nassar - and there are certainly more who have chosen not identified themselves.
Apparently with Navarro cheer: Woman in pain, traumatized, distraught, and sexually violated by a TEAMMATE? Suck it up and stay quiet. Man gets roughed up because of his choice to defend and protect a sexual predator? Someone get this man an ambulance!!
@@HzizsVynryn I 100% agree with you. I think this was just the cheer team (and potentially the uni) trying to cut off the victim's support network. Same with how everyone refused to tell the mother anything about the case, including the outright admission they didn't file the report she made.
Varsity needs to be exposed. I cannot emphasize how toxic the company is, which is honestly a perfect embodiment of the competitive cheerleading world.
Industries that make profit from exploiting young women's bodies like cheer, dance, and gymnastics have such insidious underbellies that absolutely need to be exposed and ended
agreed !!! i was rlly into cheer as an entire sport growing up my sisters and friends did it. they’re so compliant and encourage the worst parts of the sport
Yes!!! I was going to request this during a different video! Thank you for covering-it’s not getting as much coverage as it should considering how serious the allegations are
This sounds like gang behavior to me. Tattoos, control, follower hierarchy,SA, and violence. Higher Ed should be about getting an education and instead it seems to always be about the sports. And Title IX that we fought so hard for is being used against women more every day. Makes me heart sick.
Yes! Please keep up with these cheer lawsuits. My 12 year old daughter is in competition cheer. Her coach recently mentioned issues with Varsity. Luv ya Emily! Thank you for all your insight!
I am so glad you're talking about this. I feel so bad for this poor girl. Netflix has already established a shiny image of everyone one the team. I'm not saying everyone on that team was either only good or only bad, but it's really easy to think we see a true 2D image, when we don't get to see what happened behind the scenes. She just has a lot to go up against, and I hope that she can get the justice she and so many other victims rightly deserve.
Wasn't on a team but campus police and city police handled my report almost exactly the same. In the end it never got officially reported and I just waited for my lease to be up on the apartment i was staying in. Horrible how college campuses handle SA claims.
My granddaughters do competitive cheer so I was encouraged to watch the documentary. Monica struck me as very driven, but after season one, the fame went to her head. She abandoned her own team for Hollywood -- were I on the team, I would have felt deceived (there were hints that several athletes felt that way but kept it tactful.) Whether she is guilty as alleged remains to be seen. It will settle, so we'll never see the evidence UNLESS the state files criminal charges.
There’s a lot of evidence that the cheer team themselves have already exposed online about Monica and Navarro cheer🙂 a lot of evidence about Monica physically abusing them included, what was really weird was a lot of the cheerleaders were brainwashed into thinking her beating the shit out of them behind closed doors was normal
It really saddens me when another woman won't help another. You would think other girls would be your best advocate in a situation like this. Thank God for her boyfriend coming to help so she wasn't totally alone. 😔 There should be a flat out zero tolerance policy for SA.
As a Mom with two daughters that went to college this breaks my heart. Regarding reality tv well it isn’t nor has it ever been reality just a story spun to get people to watch. What is bad about it is how many children and young women and young men suffer at the hands of others on those shows
I have been a sideline and all-star cheerleader since I was 9 years old (I’m 27 now, have graduated undergrad and law school and I’m still competing if that’s any indication of the hold this sport has on its athletes!) as an athlete and a legal professional I’m excited to follow this lawsuit as well as the one challenging Varsity’s monopoly over the industry - the reckoning has been a LONG time coming.
Em, thank you so much for following this case!!❤ MORE PLEASE!! Without you, we would only know the top line reported in the media. Sharing all your feelings of shock and disappointment in the school, the coaches and the team members who further this toxic culture. LET’S DO BETTER!!
I’m a sorority girl. Yes hazing is still a thing. My sorority chapter didn’t do it (much, maybe a tiny bit for those who lived in house) but a chapter of a frat was closed the year before for hazing so they were being SUPER careful. It’s still a thing.
We had it, as well. Not so much at Kappa but another sorority was closed due to a sad incident where they put nicotine patches on a girl who passed out, and she was hospitalized.
This makes me sick to my stomach. Thank you for covering it! And please continue to do so. I can't imagine there will be another season of Cheer. I hope the victim will find justice and I wish her healing.
Makes alot of money.... marketing sponsors....pads pockets for coaches...and keeps the school in the limelight so that parents will be willing to pay the ridiculous amounts college costs..... so basically it's all for financial gain and status.
The grey number of victims must be insane (aka those who never report). Please keep us updated on this case, I know you will handle it with the care & tact it deserves whilst bringing much needed sass & levity. 💜
I graduated high school in 2004, and none of my high school or college sports teams that I was on had any type of hazing. The schools, though, had all made it very clear that any hint of hazing would get people banned from all sports.
We did competitive cheer with our oldest daughter. It was fun, it had its good times, but it also was so full of favoritism, empty promises (if you get this skill, you will be on this squad-nope-coach justified it as a dangling carrot). I was asked if our granddaughter would be participating, my answer was a very uncharacteristic NO, not out of my checkbook. Lots of politics. And she ended up with a blown out knee, that took surgery. She still did school cheer, and that is somewhat lesser favoritism. **Also, I worked for a NCAA college for 8 years. I’m aware of the issues, the hurt feelings, the cliques, the money denied to some, but freely given to others. It’s a Pandora’s box, honestly.
I remember watching this and starting out being really impressed to slowly realizing they were preying on poor kids from very broken homes sometimes, if not a lot of the time, with varying degrees of abuse. Monica was using the longing and affection-or absolute devotional love-these kids felt for her, as a weapon to get these kids to do really dangerous things for her. She also showed very little compassion or care when they were in agonizing pain. When that one girl got horribly hurt and she just dragged her feet on getting that girl help..I was livid!! As a mom, this ended up breaking my heart and I finished it very conflicted. Plus the girl who was getting all the endorsements and her family was all living off of her. I almost felt like that was beefed up reality show style but if it wasn’t, that poor girl too. Both poor and middle class or wealthy kids were being used and at least emotionally abused.
Thank you for covering this civil suit. I would love if you could continue following it and provide updates. I am so sorry to hear that the plaintiff’s school failed her when she needed them the most. I pray she finds peace and gets justice.
Yes PLEASE cover this case and hopefully more cheer related cases in the future. The Varsity/USASF suits are very interesting and I would love to see more about it. Thank you!!
thank you for saying cheerleading is a sport !!!I cheered for almost 15 years and my kids who play soccer dont think its a sport even when i went to nationals and world tournament !!!
I was super excited to see that you were covering this, I really love your input on these high profile cases. Please continue to update us if there are any updates!
My daughter did cheer and gymnastics with Madi Lane. It is so sad what she has been through. I see how it’s changed her. It is heartbreaking! Navarro cheer needs to be shut down. And Monica should have criminal charges pressed on her.
Thanks Emily. Its a really relatable case for me. Thankyou for covering it. I hope the system gets better when people report such things. Please keep covering it. Its an important issue
I wasn't on a college sports team, but i was r-worded in college (in 2018). The people around me and my college had EXTREMELY similar reactions to my case as they did hers. I went to a super liberal college in the north east. I really hope that something changes in higher education where they put the victim before the statistic. No victim should ever have to go through this.
Omg Emily covering the cheer world yassss!!! The whole Navarro program needs to be shut down. It’s been so much coming out in the past 5 years. The whole program is corrupt and dangerous.
Please continue to share the information on this case. It’s a shame that colleges allow this type of action to continue. Silence shouldn’t the recommended solution to the abuse that happens!!!
Very thought provoking and sad. Those poor kids. Dealing with such vile acts & then having no support & instead being threatened. Hellish. I wish & pray we had an answer.
Humiliation is a key component as well. There is often a very fine line between allowable legal “stunts” or “pyramid building”. The cheer squads do all they can to sneak into more and more complex and dangerous stunts but to “hide” these illegal tricks, infractions in order to do a routine that is flashy, cool, loud, PERFECT in order to win. Then, you have college cheerleaders helping coach younger high school/elementary competitive cheer-older kids coaching young ones. In short: YOU HAVE NO LIFE OUTSIDE OF CHEER. Oh, and let’s not forget the endless fundraising…
Former cheermom here…and know a mom of a former Navarro cheerleader whose daughter also cheered with Jerry in high school…Please give us updates! This needs attention!
Their success in competitions led to the college keeping their hands off the program. As long as they were winning, that brought recognition to the school, so behind the scenes activities were ignored. Good for Madi for bringing the suit. So many schools forget that education must always be their primary obligation along with keeping their students safe.
This is just sickening! Poor Madi! I’m SO glad she had her boyfriend to help get her out of there and is supporting her in pushing for justice. It’s just shameful that SA is still constantly being covered up in Colleges/Sports!
Not only is SA horribly traumatic, but when serious courage is required to even speak up about it and instead we're silenced and gaslighted we are traumatized all over again. Hard to understand unless one's been through that whole thing themself.
About the letters: I cheered for almost 2 decades. Letters are earned by the team after a major accomplishment/breakthrough. No one’s supposed to know what the abbreviation stands for unless they earn it. Competitive gyms and colleges typically do this.
Food for thought, the entire cheer industry finds Navarro so prestigious that most coaches know about their issues and don’t warn their athletes. When I was a sophomore 10yrs ago and said I was looking at Navarro my coach told me hell no, set me up to go to 4 colleges practices, and helped me get my college paid for. Bless him for helping keep me safe always as a child.
This whole toxic environment has to stop at some point. This BS secret letters and the culture that supports it is so unhealthy and almost cult like. When as a society will we realize this and finally end it? I suspect never.
I have A LOT to say about the world of cheer. My ex-abuser is one of the founders of Perfecta-Flip, a company that makes aids for cheer form. After the things he made me go through and his thoughts in relations to children I was so disturbed that his job is to scout young girls from Top Gun and sharks etc. … it’s time for cheer to have a huge reform.
As a fan of the show, a fellow Texan, and a fellow woman, as well as whatever else might be relevant; thank you for covering this. It made my stomach drop to hear what happened to this girl, Maddie. I can’t commend her enough for coming forward and I hope it’s sought through to the end. The fact that someone on campus was actively discouraging her from reporting the assault, bringing up the traumatic court process, etc. is not at all a shock to hear about in small town, Texas - or anywhere really. And again, I *cannot commend her enough for continuously coming forward **_despite the fact so many were actively discouraging her from coming forward._* I also can’t help but think of the one girl Lexi who seemed to have slipped up later in the season (she was undoubtedly my favorite) - I now wonder what she might have to say about all of this culture on campus. Her behavior was understandable to begin with but it’s especially understood now. Edit: also for what it’s worth, Maddi doesn’t cheer for UT (austin) but rather UTPB (Permian basin).
Emily, you are missing the point. Its not Athletes that are not protected by universities - its Women in general athletes are just more visible and sometimes have a platform to tell their story. What about all the other college girls who cannot tell their story? There needs to be more accountablity for colleges and the government in general to make the process of reporting and proceuting sexual assault casses easerier on the victim and more punitive on the perpatrator , If you disagree I submit the Stanford rapist, Goresh and the Cheeto as to why this need to happen.
Maddy Brum sounds like she's been a victim too with the "we just drink and don't talk about it". Makes it seem like it was almost expected and had happened to the 'veteran' girls at some point too. Horrible that Monica allowed this to happen in her team
Emily! Please follow this lawsuit. I am horrified! My daughter is a competitive dance athlete and is moving to college in August. Talks will be had due to this even though we have really good conversations regarding assaults.
How are things like this still happening!? I dont always live social media but for cases like this Im so happy for it so we can send this young woman love and support and the school/program can't continue to cover it up 🤬
As a high school cheerleading coach and as a human this hurts my heart. You should be fostering a healthy and loving environment. Your athletes should not be scared to talk to you, or tell you something.
Cheerleaders at Navarro are what one could consider 'professional cheerleaders.' Unbelievably talented, they will be making money from cheer (brand endorsements, cheer live, appearances, etc). Many also cheer at cheer athletics, a giant all-star cheer gym in Texas. Empire cheer started this year, which is an all star gym opened in Corsicana. This whole college/all star cheer thing is a private, insular cult like experience. & Yes. There's still hazing.
Please follow this case. As a mom of a career competitive softball player, I feel very blessed that my daughter never had to deal with this. Perhaps we were just lucky.
Use code EmilyBaker60 at www.GreenChef.com/EmilyBaker60 to get 60% off plus free shipping!
Get 20% OFF @honeylove with promo code LAWNERD at www.honeylove.com/ ! #honeylovepod #ad
Visit thrivecausemetics.com/EDB for 20% off your first order.
Hi Emily. Thrive Causemetics came up "discount not available right now" ☹
As a former cheer coach, gymnastics coach, and dance teacher and coach, I was so burnt out from social working endless amounts of my students, which lead to conviction of a grandfather, lawsuit of a 23 year old male dance teacher who had an inappropriate relationship with his 15 year old female assistant and now owns his own studio and has no one above him to be held responsible to as dance/competitive dance does NOT have an overseeing organization in any way, shape, or form as cheer and gymnastics do, and many more instances where charges were pressed and/or separation of child to accused was achieved. I have sooo much second hand trauma from this, I do not want to return to that career. Complete life change. I am a mommy now, and my daughter is in dance at one of the studios I used to teach at and trained other teachers, and the studio owner is very much on top of everything as she also owns a preschool, and does not tolerate any bs of any kind. But I stay at every rehearsal and never leave her unattended anywhere. I go to therapy, but the reality of how prevalent S.A. is in these sports and activities, the gro.o.ming that is part of the culture, creates dancers, teachers, and parents that think this is all fine and cute and do what you got to do to for that stupid trophy and the positive opinions of three random judges, who often are not even qualified to judge certain styles and levels. @Emily D. Baker if you ever want to discuss this subject with an “expert” on it, I would more than happy to, on or off camera. My social media is the same as this on every platform. Please cover this subject. There is sooo much that is downright wrong and avoidable in these industries. I would love to create a safety and disciplinary program for competitive and recreation dance, and need more understanding of the laws and how to do this properly. I know I would have enormous support from the infinite survivors if I did so. Thank you Miss Baker.
Sadly Emily, the honeylove promocode wont be accepted
I don’t suppose I can use your green chef code in the uk!?❤
I have never heard of a college that has done right by SA victims. They always protect their own image and therefore the perpetrator. Happened at my college and because of my job on campus I was privy to private information, and the hoops and rules bent for the perpetrator so he could continue his classes and graduate was sickening. Meanwhile multiple woman were fighting with the university just to be able to continue sharing their story and schooling. Title IX did nothing but try and silence those victims and the only reason the story came out was he eventually assaulted someone that didn’t go to our college and couldn’t be intimidated by the university higher ups. These victims deserve better than this. We all have to do better than this.
100% correct. An SA happened ON my campus and administration didn't want to have to report the incident and have it reflected in their crime stats. So they tried to make the victim report the crime to the town police station instead, so that the SA would be statistically counted towards the town's numbers, instead of "reflecting poorly" on the campus where the assault ACTUALLY occurred and where the school's private campus police were supposed to be responsible for handling and investigating.
@@BronzeBellaBria My twin sister was raped in HS by a football player and she had to leave that HS.
Colleges and Universities are known for blacklisting the SA victims and anyone who helps the victims.
@@jolliepoussey9 That's horrible. Please give her my love 💙
My sister had many bad experiences at Springfield college in Massachusetts USA. 2007-2012 or so with an abusive stalking boyfriend who tried to break thru her window. The city police sent it to the bootleg broke ass campus police who failed to protect her. Fck universities. Your kids are better off going to school online I swear. These campus cops can’t do shit right.
Thank you for covering this Emily. As a former NBA pro dancer, former cheerleader and former competitive gymnast I really appreciate this! This show started off so good but as someone in the industry it's not as surprising to hear this. I'm so over a lot of reality tv and it's quite toxic to the younger generation.
Thanks Kristi! I really enjoyed the show too...such an incredible look into the dedication of these athletes...but the dark side is so heartbreaking.
@@TheEmilyDBaker Very disheartening! Always love watching your content and we come from the same generation! I'm a beauty channel over 40! 💜
already a potentially toxic environment but with the reality shows it makes the stakes higher for the school to keep things quiet
The women who spoke up is a hero. She's making sure that this doesn't happen to anyone else. She's saving a life.
*woman (means one) Women means more than one 😏
Please continue to follow. I was a huge fan of this show....I'm saddened that adults aren't protecting these kids
Respect for the victim's boyfriend for taking action to protect his girlfriend when no one else would.
Very true! He’s the 1 person in this situation who wasn’t afraid to stand up and protect this girl and do the right thing. And her mother. 💜
@@Stormiray3 Maddy Brum's comments about "this is what Narvarro girls do - they keep it to themselves" does imply she may have a been a victim herself in the past and was at least giving Lane the best advice she legitimately thought she could - ie things will get even worse for you if you report it. If you are a 20 year old who knows that people are frequently assaulted, allegations go nowhere, and the victim usually ends up worse for trying, what would you tell a peer? Though telling a victim that she needs to talk it out with her attacker "like adults" indicates a fundamental lack of understanding of the situation, I do wonder if that is coming from Brum simply not caring or her being indoctrinated into a system that doesn't care. Sometimes when we are in a position where we lack any power, we adopted the beliefs of the system as a form of self-preservation. There is a very large-scale issue with abuse in the competitive cheer world - it is likely many Narvarro cheerleaders were victims before ever setting foot on campus.
It sounds like a suit attacking the cheer program and college and that focuses on the atmosphere of abuse and permissiveness they created is what is needed in this case.
@@Lynsey17 That's a good point and when I heard about this case, I thought back to Brum's troubled background that was touched upon in one of the programs.. I only saw the series once a while ago but isn't Maddy Brum from an unstable background in Massachusetts? I seem to remember something about her having a father in prison and feeling like she was placing all her hopes and success in life on her achievements in Cheer.
It's heartbreaking to think of the number of SA victims (female, male, trans or NBi) that choose to deal with their trauma internally and don't speak out because they believe that is their best or even only option.
@@maggiebeth5442 That story rings a bell - I was trying to remember is any of the people mentioned were featured on the show but it's not fresh enough. I believe the 2nd season covers both the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years due to COVID upsetting the schedule though I am not entirely sure. Either way, I know the time period this lawsuit deals with is after the 2nd season. One thing I remember from the show is in the first season Lexi was having issues with her teammates and it seemed to be at least partly bc she was choosing to socialize outside the team. Then you hear in the lawsuit they picked the rookie's roommates and were told to keep their dorm doors unlocked - it seems like there was a lot of pressure to stick with the team instead of creating a diverse social network. Seems like Lane might have been lucky to even have someone like her boyfriend who was outside the sphere of influence of the team/Navarro to disclose the SA to.
@@Lynsey17 It's really very sad when you start looking into it, particularly on the heels of the revelation that a psychotherapist S assaulted young females of the American National Gymnastics team for 18 years. While it's currently being brought to light in America, this is clearly not the only country in which this is happening (I'm speaking as a Brit that lived abroad and tries to follow international activity as widely as I can). At the moment, the US is the only country where the assaults are bravely being reported by the victims and the press is reporting on these cases. The number of worldwide victims that feel like they don't even have a voice must be heartbreaking.
Your point about the system isolating the athletes is also important and thank you for making it. I remember many parents in the documentary about the gymnasts talking about not being able to contact their children. Isolation is such a classic sign of an abuser and the reality that a sporting institution creates this environment is very alarming and needs to be evaluated.
I checked Maddy Brum's father's conviction after my previous comment and found that he is reportedly in prison for SA. As the daughter of a convicted rapist (that seemingly still has contact with her father), I can only imagine her views on SA are extremely abnormal. I hope she has someone she can talk to about anything that happens to her that she finds inappropriate. I'm glad EDB covered this case, she's right that it's a very important topic and we need to talk about it.
When I was in band, our “hazing” was sophomores had to wear their clothes inside out and backwards all day, and at the end of field practice that evening we had water balloons that had been refrigerated thrown at us. It was 100 outside, nobody minded the water balloons. It really was just for fun. Even our first time chaperones and new student teachers participated. We were also told if we didn’t want to do it, you were never forced or punished. A few kids didn’t participate, and that was that. It honestly was just fun! Good memories.
As someone that cheered my whole life & throughout college, & knew some of the Navarro athletes, my heart breaks for this girl. Cheer was my escape & safe space, & my coaches & teammates were my family while I was away from home. It makes me so sad that not everyone has the same amazing experience. My thoughts & prayers are with the victim - Please continue to cover this!
Also yes, the toll this sport takes on the body is insane & i didn’t even realize it until I graduated & got into the “real world.” Looking back I was so unhealthy!
There's no doubt Monica is considered a mandated reporter. This is a huge deal.
Not mandated if not licensed
Depends on if the cheerleader was underage. Texas only has abuse mandated reporting laws for children. Most college students are over 18, though sometimes there are early admits or freshmen that are 17 their first few months at college. University rules and title IX are more likely to apply, though the university doesn't seem to care all that much other than the bad publicity.
All adults in Texas are mandated reporters of abuse but child is defined as under 18.
@@bjkbjk123123 she would be bound not just by Texas law, but by the regulations of national cheer. They require reporting.
@@bhgirlhello3819 In Texas ALL adults are mandatory reporters, so yes, she IS indeed a mandated reporter in Texas.
This is heartbreaking to hear it is still happening, after an assault in college my daughter fell into a pattern of disordered eating which resulted in her heart stopping - they don't see how devastating SA can be
My college swim vets put itching powder on our swim towels. One guy went to the ER for it due to an allergic reaction on his testies. Our coach and administration kicked off 7 swimmers for that, 2 with full scholarships revoked, it was wild. I’d say it’s a toss up, some schools still have until the staff start taking it seriously.
The whole "if you talk, it'll be worse for you" thing can burn in a fire. 🔥
POWER TO THE PLAINTIFF !!!! The fact that after ALL THAT she stuck to reporting !! Yes queen
It really worries me over just the past decade, how many SA
cases have been brought forward regarding young athletes and those who are held accountable for their safety and health. It really seems these organizations put money and prestige ranking before the young athletes safety.
I am hoping more students/athletes will come forward - think this has been hidden for a very long time.. much like the Nassar incident and the horrid case of the Penn State Sandusky scandal
I completely agree with you. It’s absolutely horrifying, and terrible, and downright heartbreaking what these young students have been put through. This kind of horrible behavior has been going on since institutions of higher learning began, way back in the day, and it’s so sad to think of just how many people have received no support or recourse for the terrible things that have been done to them.
I mean, abuse is fundamental to the USA gymnastics program. Soviet countries were dominating in the 70s and 80s. The USA's rise to prominence in the 90's that has continued into the 2020's wasn't due to them finding a way to do it better than the Soviets - it happened because the USA imported the Soviet's abusive methods via defecting coaches. Bela and Marta Karolyi are largely responsible for that shift and are notoriously abusive. Among other things, they are known to force athletes to train and preform with serious injuries like broken bones and severely restrict their diets. The National Team Training center is at the Karolyi Ranch where many of Larry Nassar's crimes were committed. It's a place I personally would never send a child.
One of the most well-known images from the '96 Atlanta Olympics is Bela Karolyi carrying Kerri Strug to the podium after she courageously competed injured in order to win her team the gold. What most reports leave out of the story is that Kerri didn't want to do her 2nd vault after seriously injuring herself on her first attempted but Bela pressured her to do it. It also wasn't necessary for the USA's women's team to win gold - it guaranteed that they couldn't be caught but they would have won either way - she didn't need to risk further injury.
The USA's women's gymnastics team has not only dominated in their sport the past decade, they did it while being subjected to physical, psychological, and sexual abuse - at times in the middle of their Olympic appearances. McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and Simone Biles have all publicly come out as victims of Nassar - and there are certainly more who have chosen not identified themselves.
Why would you ever hear about the times they did the right thing? No one ever talks about that with anything.
The athletes are the product.
Yes please keep us up to date on this lawsuit!!
I like how it’s okay to call the police for her boyfriend assaulting the cheer guard… but not for the sexual assault 🙄
Apparently with Navarro cheer: Woman in pain, traumatized, distraught, and sexually violated by a TEAMMATE? Suck it up and stay quiet. Man gets roughed up because of his choice to defend and protect a sexual predator? Someone get this man an ambulance!!
I need to look into that but I suspect that the bodyguard was lying to get the boyfriend off campus.
@@HzizsVynryn I 100% agree with you. I think this was just the cheer team (and potentially the uni) trying to cut off the victim's support network. Same with how everyone refused to tell the mother anything about the case, including the outright admission they didn't file the report she made.
Varsity needs to be exposed. I cannot emphasize how toxic the company is, which is honestly a perfect embodiment of the competitive cheerleading world.
You mean in a video on UA-cam??
Industries that make profit from exploiting young women's bodies like cheer, dance, and gymnastics have such insidious underbellies that absolutely need to be exposed and ended
@@jenniferstewart9012 not necessarily; they need to be exposed in general
agreed !!! i was rlly into cheer as an entire sport growing up my sisters and friends did it. they’re so compliant and encourage the worst parts of the sport
Oh this one fascinates me! My oldest son went to Navarro during the time the documentary was being made.
Yes!!! I was going to request this during a different video! Thank you for covering-it’s not getting as much coverage as it should considering how serious the allegations are
I'm glad she's going forward with this lawsuit.
Yes, please cover these cases. It’s so important to bring these forward to awareness.
This sounds like gang behavior to me. Tattoos, control, follower hierarchy,SA, and violence. Higher Ed should be about getting an education and instead it seems to always be about the sports. And Title IX that we fought so hard for is being used against women more every day. Makes me heart sick.
cult not gang
Suzanne - I agree with you. It’s sounds that the NXIM (sp?) counseling center.
Yes! Please keep up with these cheer lawsuits. My 12 year old daughter is in competition cheer. Her coach recently mentioned issues with Varsity. Luv ya Emily! Thank you for all your insight!
I am so glad you're talking about this. I feel so bad for this poor girl. Netflix has already established a shiny image of everyone one the team. I'm not saying everyone on that team was either only good or only bad, but it's really easy to think we see a true 2D image, when we don't get to see what happened behind the scenes. She just has a lot to go up against, and I hope that she can get the justice she and so many other victims rightly deserve.
I’m all for talking to your kids and helping them navigate this ridiculous world that we live in! Yes, yes, & yes! Inform your kiddos!
Wasn't on a team but campus police and city police handled my report almost exactly the same. In the end it never got officially reported and I just waited for my lease to be up on the apartment i was staying in. Horrible how college campuses handle SA claims.
My granddaughters do competitive cheer so I was encouraged to watch the documentary. Monica struck me as very driven, but after season one, the fame went to her head. She abandoned her own team for Hollywood -- were I on the team, I would have felt deceived (there were hints that several athletes felt that way but kept it tactful.) Whether she is guilty as alleged remains to be seen. It will settle, so we'll never see the evidence UNLESS the state files criminal charges.
There’s a lot of evidence that the cheer team themselves have already exposed online about Monica and Navarro cheer🙂 a lot of evidence about Monica physically abusing them included, what was really weird was a lot of the cheerleaders were brainwashed into thinking her beating the shit out of them behind closed doors was normal
It really saddens me when another woman won't help another. You would think other girls would be your best advocate in a situation like this. Thank God for her boyfriend coming to help so she wasn't totally alone. 😔 There should be a flat out zero tolerance policy for SA.
I went to college in the 80's and it's so maddening that the more things change, the more they stay the same.
FIOFMU was definitely prominently visible in Cheer because I remember googling trying to figure out what it stood for.
This!!
They chant it too !
As a Mom with two daughters that went to college this breaks my heart. Regarding reality tv well it isn’t nor has it ever been reality just a story spun to get people to watch. What is bad about it is how many children and young women and young men suffer at the hands of others on those shows
I have been a sideline and all-star cheerleader since I was 9 years old (I’m 27 now, have graduated undergrad and law school and I’m still competing if that’s any indication of the hold this sport has on its athletes!) as an athlete and a legal professional I’m excited to follow this lawsuit as well as the one challenging Varsity’s monopoly over the industry - the reckoning has been a LONG time coming.
Yes more on cheer lawsuits like the Varsity cheer suits!!!!
Thank you for talking about this issue. Yes, please expose the truth. Heartbreaking.
Yes, Please continue this coverage but also, FYI it’s
CorsicaNa Tx.
Em, thank you so much for following this case!!❤ MORE PLEASE!! Without you, we would only know the top line reported in the media. Sharing all your feelings of shock and disappointment in the school, the coaches and the team members who further this toxic culture. LET’S DO BETTER!!
I can't believe that all these people responded the way that they did! Mind blowing. So glad the victim and her bf spoke up!
I’m a sorority girl. Yes hazing is still a thing. My sorority chapter didn’t do it (much, maybe a tiny bit for those who lived in house) but a chapter of a frat was closed the year before for hazing so they were being SUPER careful. It’s still a thing.
We had it, as well. Not so much at Kappa but another sorority was closed due to a sad incident where they put nicotine patches on a girl who passed out, and she was hospitalized.
Ok I’m hooked going to need all the coverage on this
Agreed! I want to see this coach and administration be throughly reprimanded for this disgusting behavior. Things need to change!
This makes me sick to my stomach. Thank you for covering it! And please continue to do so. I can't imagine there will be another season of Cheer. I hope the victim will find justice and I wish her healing.
I'm danish and the whole idea of collage sports and the culture arounnd it just seems so wild to me
Hi fellow Dane 👋😃 And same. It’s so difficult to understand when we don’t have the same culture around college sports.
Makes alot of money.... marketing sponsors....pads pockets for coaches...and keeps the school in the limelight so that parents will be willing to pay the ridiculous amounts college costs..... so basically it's all for financial gain and status.
The grey number of victims must be insane (aka those who never report). Please keep us updated on this case, I know you will handle it with the care & tact it deserves whilst bringing much needed sass & levity. 💜
I graduated high school in 2004, and none of my high school or college sports teams that I was on had any type of hazing. The schools, though, had all made it very clear that any hint of hazing would get people banned from all sports.
We did competitive cheer with our oldest daughter. It was fun, it had its good times, but it also was so full of favoritism, empty promises (if you get this skill, you will be on this squad-nope-coach justified it as a dangling carrot). I was asked if our granddaughter would be participating, my answer was a very uncharacteristic NO, not out of my checkbook.
Lots of politics. And she ended up with a blown out knee, that took surgery. She still did school cheer, and that is somewhat lesser favoritism.
**Also, I worked for a NCAA college for 8 years. I’m aware of the issues, the hurt feelings, the cliques, the money denied to some, but freely given to others. It’s a Pandora’s box, honestly.
How very sad but she is so brave to speak up and that is so important. Please keep covering - this is important.
I remember watching this and starting out being really impressed to slowly realizing they were preying on poor kids from very broken homes sometimes, if not a lot of the time, with varying degrees of abuse. Monica was using the longing and affection-or absolute devotional love-these kids felt for her, as a weapon to get these kids to do really dangerous things for her.
She also showed very little compassion or care when they were in agonizing pain. When that one girl got horribly hurt and she just dragged her feet on getting that girl help..I was livid!! As a mom, this ended up breaking my heart and I finished it very conflicted.
Plus the girl who was getting all the endorsements and her family was all living off of her. I almost felt like that was beefed up reality show style but if it wasn’t, that poor girl too. Both poor and middle class or wealthy kids were being used and at least emotionally abused.
Well said. Well said.
Thank you for covering this civil suit. I would love if you could continue following it and provide updates. I am so sorry to hear that the plaintiff’s school failed her when she needed them the most. I pray she finds peace and gets justice.
Yes please, keep covering this!
Thank you for covering this case - and helping to provide more exposure in this area. Would love to hear updates!
please continue to follow the story. it makes me sick to my stomach that colleges keep tryin to protect the accused not the victim
Sending all my support to Madi for the strength to keep pressing this forward into the light! My heart hurts for her!
This is college athletics. Always has been, always will be. Coaches know and perpetrate it. All that matters is winning.
Please keep covering this. It raises such important issues. I’m absolutely shocked by what I’m hearing.
Yes PLEASE cover this case and hopefully more cheer related cases in the future. The Varsity/USASF suits are very interesting and I would love to see more about it. Thank you!!
Yes very interested in you continuing to follow this suit!! Thanks for keeping us so well informed Emily!!
thank you for saying cheerleading is a sport !!!I cheered for almost 15 years and my kids who play soccer dont think its a sport even when i went to nationals and world tournament !!!
My son is a D1 athlete & I have a discussion with him every year about the fact you can not stay quiet!
I was super excited to see that you were covering this, I really love your input on these high profile cases. Please continue to update us if there are any updates!
31:46 don’t forget “she was asking for it” MISOGYNY AND IGNORANCE AT ITS FINEST!
My daughter did cheer and gymnastics with Madi Lane. It is so sad what she has been through. I see how it’s changed her. It is heartbreaking! Navarro cheer needs to be shut down. And Monica should have criminal charges pressed on her.
Please cover. Would love to follow this case. Hope her voice will be heard and will protect the athletes now and in the future.
Thanks Emily. Its a really relatable case for me. Thankyou for covering it. I hope the system gets better when people report such things. Please keep covering it. Its an important issue
722 THOUSAND people are supporting you girl.. keep up the amazing work. Love from Pennsylvania!!
I would love for Emily to continue to cover the Navarro Cheer lawsuits. ❤
I feel invested. Please continue reporting on this case.
I wasn't on a college sports team, but i was r-worded in college (in 2018). The people around me and my college had EXTREMELY similar reactions to my case as they did hers. I went to a super liberal college in the north east.
I really hope that something changes in higher education where they put the victim before the statistic. No victim should ever have to go through this.
Omg Emily covering the cheer world yassss!!! The whole Navarro program needs to be shut down. It’s been so much coming out in the past 5 years. The whole program is corrupt and dangerous.
Please continue to share the information on this case. It’s a shame that colleges allow this type of action to continue. Silence shouldn’t the recommended solution to the abuse that happens!!!
Very thought provoking and sad. Those poor kids. Dealing with such vile acts & then having no support & instead being threatened. Hellish. I wish & pray we had an answer.
Please continue to cover this story! I am very interested in following along.
Please continue to follow this! It is super interesting to me!
Very important cases to talk about! Really glad you are courageous to cover them! Especially title 9 related
Please continue to follow this case. So incredibly sad that these athletes are treated this way 😢
Humiliation is a key component as well.
There is often a very fine line between allowable legal “stunts” or “pyramid building”. The cheer squads do all they can to sneak into more and more complex and dangerous stunts but to “hide” these illegal tricks, infractions in order to do a routine that is flashy, cool, loud, PERFECT in order to win. Then, you have college cheerleaders helping coach younger high school/elementary competitive cheer-older kids coaching young ones.
In short: YOU HAVE NO LIFE OUTSIDE OF CHEER.
Oh, and let’s not forget the endless fundraising…
Former cheermom here…and know a mom of a former Navarro cheerleader whose daughter also cheered with Jerry in high school…Please give us updates! This needs attention!
Yes please keep us updated on this case. Loved this show!
Their success in competitions led to the college keeping their hands off the program. As long as they were winning, that brought recognition to the school, so behind the scenes activities were ignored. Good for Madi for bringing the suit. So many schools forget that education must always be their primary obligation along with keeping their students safe.
This is just sickening! Poor Madi! I’m SO glad she had her boyfriend to help get her out of there and is supporting her in pushing for justice. It’s just shameful that SA is still constantly being covered up in Colleges/Sports!
Please continue your perspective on Navarro Cheer.
I’ve heard so many good things about your channel and content! Soooo happy to have watched this as my first video! 😊
Not only is SA horribly traumatic, but when serious courage is required to even speak up about it and instead we're silenced and gaslighted we are traumatized all over again.
Hard to understand unless one's been through that whole thing themself.
would totally love seing more of this professional cheer lawsuits
About the letters: I cheered for almost 2 decades. Letters are earned by the team after a major accomplishment/breakthrough. No one’s supposed to know what the abbreviation stands for unless they earn it. Competitive gyms and colleges typically do this.
Food for thought, the entire cheer industry finds Navarro so prestigious that most coaches know about their issues and don’t warn their athletes. When I was a sophomore 10yrs ago and said I was looking at Navarro my coach told me hell no, set me up to go to 4 colleges practices, and helped me get my college paid for. Bless him for helping keep me safe always as a child.
This whole toxic environment has to stop at some point. This BS secret letters and the culture that supports it is so unhealthy and almost cult like. When as a society will we realize this and finally end it? I suspect never.
I would very much be interested in keeping tabs on this case as it progresses.
Love your work EDB 💜
Here in TX hazing is still VERY COMMON and has been coming to light in the news here and there in the last year
Definitely into hearing more on cases involving cheer as a former cheerleader 📣 💜
I have A LOT to say about the world of cheer. My ex-abuser is one of the founders of Perfecta-Flip, a company that makes aids for cheer form. After the things he made me go through and his thoughts in relations to children I was so disturbed that his job is to scout young girls from Top Gun and sharks etc. … it’s time for cheer to have a huge reform.
As a fan of the show, a fellow Texan, and a fellow woman, as well as whatever else might be relevant; thank you for covering this. It made my stomach drop to hear what happened to this girl, Maddie. I can’t commend her enough for coming forward and I hope it’s sought through to the end. The fact that someone on campus was actively discouraging her from reporting the assault, bringing up the traumatic court process, etc. is not at all a shock to hear about in small town, Texas - or anywhere really. And again, I *cannot commend her enough for continuously coming forward **_despite the fact so many were actively discouraging her from coming forward._*
I also can’t help but think of the one girl Lexi who seemed to have slipped up later in the season (she was undoubtedly my favorite) - I now wonder what she might have to say about all of this culture on campus. Her behavior was understandable to begin with but it’s especially understood now.
Edit: also for what it’s worth, Maddi doesn’t cheer for UT (austin) but rather UTPB (Permian basin).
Emily, you are missing the point. Its not Athletes that are not protected by universities - its Women in general athletes are just more visible and sometimes have a platform to tell their story. What about all the other college girls who cannot tell their story? There needs to be more accountablity for colleges and the government in general to make the process of reporting and proceuting sexual assault casses easerier on the victim and more punitive on the perpatrator , If you disagree I submit the Stanford rapist, Goresh and the Cheeto as to why this need to happen.
That happened for me with Love is Blind…finding out the allegations about the impact on contestants’ mental health.
Maddy Brum sounds like she's been a victim too with the "we just drink and don't talk about it". Makes it seem like it was almost expected and had happened to the 'veteran' girls at some point too. Horrible that Monica allowed this to happen in her team
Sadly the honeylove promocode didnt work
Emily! Please follow this lawsuit. I am horrified! My daughter is a competitive dance athlete and is moving to college in August. Talks will be had due to this even though we have really good conversations regarding assaults.
How are things like this still happening!? I dont always live social media but for cases like this Im so happy for it so we can send this young woman love and support and the school/program can't continue to cover it up 🤬
It’s always hard when the curtain to something is lifted. It can never go back and always tints your views from then on 😢
As a high school cheerleading coach and as a human this hurts my heart. You should be fostering a healthy and loving environment. Your athletes should not be scared to talk to you, or tell you something.
Cheerleaders at Navarro are what one could consider 'professional cheerleaders.' Unbelievably talented, they will be making money from cheer (brand endorsements, cheer live, appearances, etc). Many also cheer at cheer athletics, a giant all-star cheer gym in Texas. Empire cheer started this year, which is an all star gym opened in Corsicana. This whole college/all star cheer thing is a private, insular cult like experience. & Yes. There's still hazing.
😮 I can’t believe this is going on. I love this show so now I have to find out what happened
Please follow this case. As a mom of a career competitive softball player, I feel very blessed that my daughter never had to deal with this. Perhaps we were just lucky.