School Bans Boy's My Little Pony Backpack

Another little boy is being bullied over his love for My Little Pony—but in this case, his school has taken controversial action. Grayson Bruce, 9, is no longer allowed to bring his My Little Pony backpack to his North Carolina elementary school, he and his mom, Noreen, tell WLOS. Bruce says the school told her son the backpack was a distraction and a "trigger for bullying." But, she notes, that's "like saying a short skirt is a trigger for rape." A Facebook page supporting Grayson has more than 30,000 fans, and more than 5,000 people have signed a petition asking that Grayson be allowed to bring the backpack back to school.

Grayson says kids at school are "taking it a little too far, with punching me, pushing me down, calling me horrible names, stuff that really shouldn't happen." He says the backpack did seem to make things worse. All the school district has said so far: "An initial step was taken to immediately address a situation that had created a disruption in the classroom. Buncombe County Schools takes bullying very seriously, and we will continue to take steps to resolve this issue." (Another North Carolina boy attempted suicide after he was bullied over the same cartoon; WRIC reports that he is now out of intensive care but has suffered brain trauma.)