Eight stars symbol in school. Teacher in dispute with teenager
An elementary school student in Zielonka (Mazowieckie voivodeship) came to school with a backpack on which she had a pin with an eight-star symbol (a well known slogan containing a curse, insulting the ruling party in Poland). The teacher considered it vulgar. The teenager's father and the head teacher became involved.
The edziecko.pl portal described the story of Gosia, an eighth-grade student at Elementary School No. 2 in Zielonka, near Warsaw. The girl was said to have come to school with a symbol of eight stars pinned to her backpack. It is a censored slogan "F*** PiS." The teenager allegedly received the pin during one of the Women's Strike marches.
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The pin was spotted by an English teacher. The woman asked the teenager not to wear the symbol at school, as it is "commonly associated with vulgarity." A discussion ensued between the teacher and the teenager.
"F***Gosia" on the blackboard at school
Gosia was said to have argued that the school should not restrict freedom of expression. The teacher then wrote "***** Gosia" on the blackboard to illustrate how the association works. The woman said that what she wrote meant "I love Gosia." The students, who were witnessing the argument, took a picture of the blackboard.
The father stood up for his daughter. According to the man, "the symbol of eight stars is in no way vulgar, there is no inscription, offensive shape, so the message is polite" edziecko.pl reports.
"Eight stars" at school. The headmistress takes the stand
The headmistress of the institution took a stand in the dispute. "I did not witness the incident, however, I learned about it from the teacher. The student reacted very emotionally to the teacher's remark. A discussion ensued, which went something like: 'I have the right to express my views! - 'Yes, you have, but do it in a civil way,'" the woman said to the edziecko.pl portal.
"The meaning of the eight-star symbol is no secret. Not only is it vulgar, but it is also political, and a school should be neutral. We do not question the views of our students. The question is whether they should manifest them in such a way on the premises of the institution. The situation that happened was not worth such a fuss. This is a matter that can be calmly discussed with the school psychologist," the headmistress added.