Post by leftbehind on Sept 24, 2009 11:07:41 GMT
Boy called 'racist' for playing soldiers
By MILES ERWIN - Thursday, September 24, 2009
A boy of nine was branded a racist by teachers for playing a game of soldiers with a Polish friend, his mother claimed yesterday.
Steven Cheek was told off for pretending to gun down his eastern European classmate and saying: 'We've got to shoot the German army.'
His teacher immediately sent him to see the deputy head, who forced him to stand in front of the class and apologise. But his mother, 37-year-old Jane Hennessey, accused the school of 'over-reacting'.
'He's not a racist - he's only nine years old and he didn't single out the Polish boy, who is one of his good friends,' she said.
'That just happened to be who he was playing with.'
'He didn't understand what he had done wrong - he was just playing a game like kids always do. He came home after being told off and said, "mum, what's racism?".'
But Viv Perri, headteacher at Purford Green Primary School, in Harlow, Essex, denied Steven was accused of racism.
'When a pupil uses inappropriate language or terms that could be offensive, we have a responsibility to explain to them why their behaviour is wrong,' she said.
By MILES ERWIN - Thursday, September 24, 2009
A boy of nine was branded a racist by teachers for playing a game of soldiers with a Polish friend, his mother claimed yesterday.
Steven Cheek was told off for pretending to gun down his eastern European classmate and saying: 'We've got to shoot the German army.'
His teacher immediately sent him to see the deputy head, who forced him to stand in front of the class and apologise. But his mother, 37-year-old Jane Hennessey, accused the school of 'over-reacting'.
'He's not a racist - he's only nine years old and he didn't single out the Polish boy, who is one of his good friends,' she said.
'That just happened to be who he was playing with.'
'He didn't understand what he had done wrong - he was just playing a game like kids always do. He came home after being told off and said, "mum, what's racism?".'
But Viv Perri, headteacher at Purford Green Primary School, in Harlow, Essex, denied Steven was accused of racism.
'When a pupil uses inappropriate language or terms that could be offensive, we have a responsibility to explain to them why their behaviour is wrong,' she said.
