LITTLE ROCK, AR - "Everyone felt guilty," said Parkview High School Senior Brian Strigel.
Strigel remembers watching his classmate Chandler Barnwell get bullied in school.
"Parkview Administration - I don't want to put them in a bad light but they do tend to distance themselves a little bit," he said.
Now, two years after Chandler's suicide, the U.S. Department of Education is investigating the Little Rock School District on two violations of the law in Chandler's case. That he was discriminated against based on his sex and on his disability. Chandler had Asperger's Syndrome. So does his classmate, Strigel.
"If I would have known about his situation as much as I could have I could have helped him," said Strigel.
Students like Strigel who are bullied in school gather at the First Presbyterian Church for DYSC (diverse Youth for Social Change) meetings on Friday nights.
They say it's the only place they feel safe.
"I get made fun of a lot," said 8th grader Sam Coley. "I get called 'queer,' 'faggot,' any name in the book."
The Little Rock School District says they're cooperating in the investigation and that a previous investigation by the Arkansas Department of Education found no violations of civil rights laws by the district. But both students and their parents disagree.
"Teachers administrators and councilors need help," said Coley's mother, Carla. "They don't have any training on how to identify with LGBT youth."
