Consequences

A little 9 year old boy took his "My Little Pony" backpack to school and was teased and harrassed by the other students.  The school's response was to tell the little boy he was not to bring that backpack to school again.



This is a multi problem.  The little boy did nothing wrong and his tormentors were wrong to tease him but the fact is, if a boy wears or carries something that is primarily feminine, he will be teased.  It's not right or fair but that is the consequence of behaving out of the norm.



My greatgrandson, Nolan, got into a bit of trouble at home and his Gramma tried to explain to him that there are consequences in life if you misbehave.  Well, there are expected consequences in life no matter whether you are good or bad or indifferent.  If you choose to wander down a darkened alley in a known crime ridden area, it may not be fair or right but the consequences of that action could very well end in you being robbed, raped, or killed.  If a boy shows up at school in a pink dress...well, it won't be pleasant for him.  And no-one should be surprised.



Consequences are not necessarily fair.  Logically we all know that to live and let live is the right way but we all have deep set prejudices and beliefs that fire us up when we see something that challenges them.  My pet peeve is not a little boy with a girl's backpack but my nostrils do flare when I see a man with his pants hanging below his butt.  He has every right to do so but I immediately place him as an illiterate lowlife who is probably on welfare.  Now, logically I know that isn't necessarily the truth but just the sight of him hits all my no-no buttons.



Quite often, the people who go against the norm and display themselves in what we consider outrageous form are looking for attention.  They don't even mind negative attention just as long as they are noticed.  I know that keeping the status quo is considered behaving like sheep but it's somehow calmer on the nerves.  It doesn't take much to step outside the borders of what is "normal" and those that do make us uncomfortable.



Adults handle those differences better than children do so it's the children who take the brunt of harrassment if they do anything that is out of the norm.  The mother of the little 9 year old boy who did nothing more than use a packpack that was meant for a little girl chose to remove him from the school rather than give in to unfair demands.  She taught her child not to crumble to a black and white society but to stand up for himself.  But, by doing so, she's removed her little boy from a society he needs to live in.  By making a fuss like this over such a small incident, fair or not, she's drawn more unfavorable attention to her child.  The consequences might prove to draw more teasing and harrassment than ever.



I think that mother was put into a situation of what my mother used to call "hell or high water" and, no matter what she chose to do, it would have had consequences.  



I hope the school officials are able to keep control of bullying if and when that little boy goes back to school.  Life should be easier than this for a 9 year old child.