Another good reason for, where it is permitted, to homeschool.
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
An eight-year-old boy has sparked an unlikely outcry in Sweden after failing to invite two of his classmates to his birthday party.
The boy's school says he has violated the children's rights and has complained to the Swedish Parliament.
The school, in Lund, southern Sweden, argues that if invitations are handed out on school premises then it must ensure there is no discrimination.
The boy's father has lodged a complaint with the parliamentary ombudsman.
He says the two children were left out because one did not invite his son to his own party and he had fallen out with the other one.
The boy handed out his birthday invitations during class-time and when the teacher spotted that two children had not received one the invitations were confiscated.
"My son has taken it pretty hard," the boy's father told the newspaper Sydsvenskan.
"No one has the right to confiscate someone's property in this way, it's like taking someone's post," he added.
A verdict on the matter is likely to be reached in September, in time for the next school year.
Sweden has, as we all know, a very strange set of laws in this department and tries to be so advanced that it is in fact making a mockery of itself.
While this country throws an tantrum when a child snubs his classmates as regards to invites to a birthday party it does not have such an exemplary record, for instance, when it comes to the Romani where, in fact, the race relations are rather strained despite their great mantle of openness and, while it is true that they have taken in a fair number of Romani refugees and such, the general relations from state and public towards Romani People is no better than in other countries where such strange laws do not exist.
© M Smith (Veshengro), July 2008
