Is this story for real?

[Anonymous]

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/article/20131115/NEWS/131119440/1064/chantilly-teen-desperate-to-return-to-us-from-siberia&template=fairfaxTimes

A Chantilly High School student who says she was banished to Siberia by her mother and stepfather in 2011 is trying to return to the United States.

[Anonymous]

We that's some shitty parenting. I doubt there is much she can do since one parent sent her to the next.

[Anonymous]

If so, well, she's not a U.S. Citizen.

[Anonymous]

She wasn't banished to Siberia!

She was an unruly out of control teen who was sent to live with her father in Russia. Both her parents are Russian and she herself is not an American citizen. She went to her father's willingly but then her mother decided to have her stay with her dad rather than returning home.

Sounds like spectacularly poor parenting and lots of conflict and frustration however 'banished to Siberia' is a bit dramatic.

[Anonymous]

Very similar thing happened to my friend's brother. He dad brought him to Russia for a family wedding and left him there for a year. I think it's not terribly uncommon for immigrant parents to send kids with behavior problems (or kids who they think have behavior problems) back home.

[Anonymous]

Ha, she is still a spoiled brat. Instead of owning up to her actions and apologizing, she keeps finding excuses.

[Anonymous]

But wth? Her parents arent springing for her education?

[Anonymous]

I am sure her parents tried everything they could before "banishing" her to Siberia. She was probably very unruly and nothing worked. So instead of letting her fall with the wrong crowd, become a druggie and die on the streets ( like mcLean student who died a few months ago from an overdose), they decided to take her to Siberia where she would not have access to all of these things. I think this is great parenting

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am sure her parents tried everything they could before "banishing" her to Siberia. She was probably very unruly and nothing worked. So instead of letting her fall with the wrong crowd, become a druggie and die on the streets ( like mcLean student who died a few months ago from an overdose), they decided to take her to Siberia where she would not have access to all of these things. I think this is great parenting

Maybe not.

I lived with a Russian family briefly when I was younger. It was a mom and a teenage daughter who just turned 18. The mom felt that once her daughter entered high school she could take care of herself. It was really sad. The mom would go live at her boyfriend's house for weeks at a time and leave me at home with her daughter. She was a nice kid but I was only a few years older than her and totally not interested in being a mother figure. Her mom would have gladly shipped her off to her father's house but he was out of the picture. This kid got good grades, had normal friends, and didn't do anything rebellious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure her parents tried everything they could before "banishing" her to Siberia. She was probably very unruly and nothing worked. So instead of letting her fall with the wrong crowd, become a druggie and die on the streets ( like mcLean student who died a few months ago from an overdose), they decided to take her to Siberia where she would not have access to all of these things. I think this is great parenting

Maybe not.

I lived with a Russian family briefly when I was younger. It was a mom and a teenage daughter who just turned 18. The mom felt that once her daughter entered high school she could take care of herself. It was really sad. The mom would go live at her boyfriend's house for weeks at a time and leave me at home with her daughter. She was a nice kid but I was only a few years older than her and totally not interested in being a mother figure. Her mom would have gladly shipped her off to her father's house but he was out of the picture. This kid got good grades, had normal friends, and didn't do anything rebellious.

Well the situation you are describing is not similar to what happened here. You said that kid had good grades and did not do anything rebellious. I don't think that is the case here, plus this mom did not just ship her off so she could live with her boyfriend she' s been married for a long time and have other kids as well. This is a totally different situation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am sure her parents tried everything they could before "banishing" her to Siberia. She was probably very unruly and nothing worked. So instead of letting her fall with the wrong crowd, become a druggie and die on the streets ( like mcLean student who died a few months ago from an overdose), they decided to take her to Siberia where she would not have access to all of these things. I think this is great parenting

Maybe not.

I lived with a Russian family briefly when I was younger. It was a mom and a teenage daughter who just turned 18. The mom felt that once her daughter entered high school she could take care of herself. It was really sad. The mom would go live at her boyfriend's house for weeks at a time and leave me at home with her daughter. She was a nice kid but I was only a few years older than her and totally not interested in being a mother figure. Her mom would have gladly shipped her off to her father's house but he was out of the picture. This kid got good grades, had normal friends, and didn't do anything rebellious.

I am from from another country and in our culture kids stay with us while in college and sometimes even after, until they get married or move in with someone - so I do get your point. However, you DO realize that in the U.S this is pretty common right? Once they turn 18 they are assumed to be able to take care of themselves and some parents even throw their kids out if they don't go to college and don't find a job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: I think it's not terribly uncommon for immigrant parents to send kids with behavior problems (or kids who they think have behavior problems) back home.

This. There's little one can do with kids with behavior problems here. The law and the society tie your hands. I know of a family whose son was constantly getting in all sorts of trouble with the law while in high school. His parents decided that it was better to send him to their home country and visit him once every couple of months than to visit him in jail in the US which was where he was headed. Today, he's totally reformed and is in medical school. It may not always work but it is the answer for a lot of immigrant families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: I think it's not terribly uncommon for immigrant parents to send kids with behavior problems (or kids who they think have behavior problems) back home.

This. There's little one can do with kids with behavior problems here. The law and the society tie your hands. I know of a family whose son was constantly getting in all sorts of trouble with the law while in high school. His parents decided that it was better to send him to their home country and visit him once every couple of months than to visit him in jail in the US which was where he was headed. Today, he's totally reformed and is in medical school. It may not always work but it is the answer for a lot of immigrant families.

Not just immigrant families; I know a local parent who's child was gifted but very unruly (alcohol, use of MJ without a prescription). They tried a expensive, strict boarding school, but the teen was kicked out for bad behavior.

Last resort was to send the child back to the biological mother in a rural area. It does not always work, but I do jot blame the parents for trying a new environment when a teen's behavior becomes criminal, destructive and dangerous to the whole family. That Russian girls decision to start dealing drugs was definitely putting the whole family at risk.

He failure to take any responsibility makes me think it's way too soon to consider letting her return to the environment where she developed her criminal habits. She was not the victim here; her younger step siblings were the victims - as well as the poor parents.

[Anonymous]

^^^ Totally agree with this pp! There are A LOT of great kids out there in other countries. Hardworking, responsible kids who would love an opportunity to live and study here in the U.S and eventually build a life for them here. For those, we should have open arms. For this brat, she has to get her act straight and better herself before applying for immigration.