Crazy Neighbors

[rexbeccarox]

I live in a fairly small townhouse and I have... difficult next-door neighbors. They've always been loud and obnoxious, being that, what I think I've figured out, there's a mom and a dad (although he's gone most of the time) and five kids, ranging from a toddler to a kid in his mid-teens. Also, there's a little rat terrier, although they never let her in the house... even when they're gone for the weekend. They just leave her out there.

I was thinking about calling the Humane Society, but then I realized the problem wasn't just with the dog. A few weeks ago, I heard the mother drunkenly and angrily swearing at her kids. She was threatening to "beat the fuck out of" one of them, and then there were several audible smacks. Keep in mind, this is on their back patio... about five feet away from where I was sitting.

Then, the dad came around for a few weeks, and, while they were still being obnoxious, things got more jovial and they even let the dog in the house. I felt a little better.

Yesterday, I was outside smoking, and I heard them all saying goodbye to their dad.

Tonight, I went outside, and the neighbors had a small bonfire going. They were listening to "Losing My Religion" by REM, and the little boy (five or six is my guess) was dancing and commenting on how it was a weird video. His brother told him he looked gay, and his mom said, "James. Quit it. You look like a fucking fag."

The kid cried and whined a little, until his mom started screaming that he needed to get inside and make up his bed (which is the sleeper sofa, from what I gathered), and he cried some more and went into the house.

There was a brief interlude which included mom, talking to her teenage daughter, calling Ellen Degeneres a "fucking dyke". Daughter told mom she was tired and wanted to go to bed, mom begged daughter to stay up. Daughter begged, with no response, mom to wake her up in the morning.

Then the kid came back outside, crying because he couldn't get the sleeper sofa open, and the mom just started raging. "Fine! If you can't do it yourself you can sleep on the fucking floor!" "Go to bed, you little shit, or I'm gonna beat your ass!" *Smack smack smack* *cry wail cry* *smack smack smack*. "Mom! I don't know what I should do!" "Figure it out!" *smack*

I moved in in October, and they moved in around November. There has always been this weird thing, where my roommate and I are nice to the kids (my roommate works for a popular magazine and gives them back issues. I give them my old hoops), and the mom has never even looked at us... well, until last week when she came to our door to try to sell us something.

I'm really worried about these kids... I feel like the worst case scenario is she'll kill one of them, and best case is that she'll turn them into bigoted abusers like herself. I'm worried about the kids, but I'm also worried about what will happen to us if she gets wind that I called a social worker or the Humane Society or both. I honestly don't know what to do here, and it's been a thing bugging me for months.

My roommate doesn't want me to do anything. My sister thinks I need to stand up for the kids and the dog by calling social services.

What do you guys think? I really appreciate you taking your time.

[Fruity]

Do something.

I work with kids that get pulled out of their homes, kids still in their abuser homes, run away kids, etc. These kids are waiting for someone to help them. You can't imagine what it's like to be them. Please, do something. You could be saving lives. I mean, not just because of the risk that she could kill them, but think:
-kid could become suicidal
-kid could become abuser
-kid could become criminal
-kid could go through life feeling like he isn't worth anything
-kid could kill his mom

I mean, anything could happen and the possibility of it being positive is minimal. Even if they are resilient, the quality of life is terrible. All you have to do is say something even if it is anonymous. Let CPS take care of the rest. Hopefully they'll find what they need in order to do something. Granted the kids could end up in foster care (if they find evidence) and they could have it bad there, too. But still, they could have the chance of finding a good place. If not, at least CPS will be checking up on them. If you could listen to one, just one of the kids I talk to on a daily basis, I'm sure you would stand up for them. These kids could be great adults one day, given the chance.

[catfish]

That is wrong on so many levels...
You don't just call the po-po without first talking to the mother and father.

Man up and do the right thing, talk to those involved first.

[NoraBrimstone]

That is wrong on so many levels...
You don't just call the po-po without first talking to the mother and father.

Man up and do the right thing, talk to those involved first.

This. You need to speak to them about it before you go getting a Cunt, sorry, Child Snatcher, nope, I mean "Social Worker" involved. All Social Services will do is fuck those kids up way more than their parents ever could. At the end of the day, Social Services punish children horrifically for things their parents have done. They throw them into children's homes which are disgusting places where they're treated worse than prisoners, or sent to live with Foster Parents, who are often just as abusive as the family the kids were stolen from in the first place. Not to mention that the kids will almost definitely be split up if there are 5 of them.

Do you really want to be responsible for that? A toddler in a dirty old bed in a children's home without his/her mummy, crying for her and wondering what he/she did wrong?

[Waratah]

Kids come first. If you believe what you have seen is child abuse then you should report it to the appropriate authority. Where I am from the authorities will not do anything from just one report unless a child is in immediate danger of physical harm(broken bones, starvation etc).
Here are some links to help you in your decision.





A dog being left outside is not abusing the dog.

[Kayenneh]

I don't like how the system treats foster children, and from what I've gathered it's even worse in the USA than over here. But the safety and well-being of the kids comes first, and adults who can speak for them should. Maybe you could talk to the kids and see what they think about their situation, because most abused children don't know that their situation is abnormal. And it might be a good idea to talk to the mother, though one should never take out one's suffering on others, she might be a victim too, despite her being the culprit in this drama.

[festive1]

I'd call CPS. It doesn't sound like this is the type of person you can have a conversation with. What could you even say? Excuse me ma'am, I couldn't help overhearing you yelling at and smacking your kids the other night...? I'm sure that conversation would end well. /sarcasm.
Personally, I'd make the call. You know the kids are being hit, yelled at, belittled. That is child abuse.

[Fruity]

Someone had consideration of the person that put my friend and me through hell. I wish someone would have thought of us first.

Just sayin'.

[Stan]

Do something.

I work with kids that get pulled out of their homes, kids still in their abuser homes, run away kids, etc. These kids are waiting for someone to help them. You can't imagine what it's like to be them. Please, do something. You could be saving lives. I mean, not just because of the risk that she could kill them, but think:
-kid could become suicidal
-kid could become abuser
-kid could become criminal
-kid could go through life feeling like he isn't worth anything
-kid could kill his mom

I mean, anything could happen and the possibility of it being positive is minimal. Even if they are resilient, the quality of life is terrible. All you have to do is say something even if it is anonymous. Let CPS take care of the rest. Hopefully they'll find what they need in order to do something. Granted the kids could end up in foster care (if they find evidence) and they could have it bad there, too. But still, they could have the chance of finding a good place. If not, at least CPS will be checking up on them. If you could listen to one, just one of the kids I talk to on a daily basis, I'm sure you would stand up for them. These kids could be great adults one day, given the chance.

you forgot to add:

-kid could become a fanatic religious monster

[Psykhronic]

I do not understand what talking to the adults in the situation will accomplish.

As much as I hate to advocate this, because it is a pretty shitty system, call CPS. They have at least a chance of ending up in a better situation. What chance do they have right now?