Sometimes my fellow-Italians make me proud. Not every day, but more often than you'd think

[fpb]

A junior high school in the town of Catanzaro, in the far south of the country - a territory plagued by mafia and economic stagnation, and not generally regarded as among Italy's most vital or progressive - had a Year Three class (13-14 year olds) one of whoom had Down's syndrome. (Italian law demands that, as far as possible, children with any kind of disability should be taught in ordinary schools.) A class outing was scheduled, and the school's headmistress decreed that the disabled child should not come.

All the children spontaneously refused to go on the outing.

The headmistress, having started on an illegal and immoral path, insisted, as people sometimes do, and demanded not only that the Down's child should not go on any outing, but that the class should, from henceforth, keep news of such outings from him.

The children replied that in that case they would not go on any outing either.

(These, as they have been reported, were class decisions, with the whole class presumably voting on them.)

Comments

[arhyalon.livejournal.com]

Wow. Good for them.

Makes me proud, too. And I'm not particularly Italian. ;-)

[fellmama.livejournal.com]

Heh, you took the words right off of my screen!

[ravenclaw-eric.livejournal.com]

Good for them! If I were a parent of someone in that class, I'd take them all out someplace on my own nickel.