He must ain't have any uncles, cousins, or friends for him not to know how to defend himself or come to his aid. It's not necessarily his people's fault; there are a lot of kids who have family members with hand skills and still don't make a difference.
The fight isn't in everybody. Either you got it, or you don't; some have it naturally, and others it takes time; I know this because I lived in tough neighborhoods growing up. Some kids were just natural-born punks throughout grade school and others fought like a lion in them. Still, this kid should've stood tall and, rather than licking the shoes, just accepted the ass-whooping like a man, as he would've at least taken the L with some dignity.
Kids around school can respect you for losing a fight as long as you tried and didn't run away, but getting on your knees and licking another kid's shoe is the ultimate defeat, and many around school won't ever forget that, he'll forever be made fun of it. He was scared and didn't want to take the beating, win or lose, I would've fought regardless.
