I would never of believe this could happen in Ca. but not only does it happen, it seems to be wide spread and growing. I'm not talking about a huge amount of money owed per family before the punishment kicks in, the amount is only $5.00. What is happening when a parent owes 5 bucks or more ? The child is subjected to public humilation, embarrassment, ridicule, and all the other cruel ways kids treat those they see has lesser than themselves. How many of us can remember how that feels, and what it can lead to ?
In a nutshell here is what is happening. Imagine yourself 7 or 8 yrs old, going thru the lunchline to get your pizza or hamburger for lunch like everyone else. You load up your tray just like your friends in front and back of you, only to have the line stopped, being told to empty your tray, and having plain cheese sandwich placed on your tray. No burger, no fries, no pizza, no fruit, just a brown cheese sandwich. A Scarlet Letter if you will, has been laid on your tray and everyone in line hears you being told that if you want the same lunch as everyone else, your parents need to pay their bills. In front of your peers, friends, and the bullys, it has just been announced that you are poor, you dad is a deadbeat, and you don't deserve a decent meal.
I cried when I read this, I cried for every child that was being treated this way and for what I knew it did to them.
I grew up poor, and I'm very aware of the way children with money treat those with less. I had to wear hand-me-downs, or the cheap brands of clothes. My winter coat one year was made of plastic, so the winter of my 4th grade yr was a cold walk to school because I would hide it on the way to school instead of facing the cruelty of the other kids. These days we spend millions on building self-esteem only to destroy it over a cheese sandwich seems so destructive to me.
CHULA VISTA, CALIF. — When too many parents fell behind on paying for school lunches, the Chula Vista Elementary School District decided to get tough — on the children.
They told students with deadbeat parents that they had only one lunch choice: a cheese sandwich.
The sandwich, served on whole wheat bread, came with a clear message: Tell your parents to pay up — or no more pizza and burgers for you.
Badge of Shame
I'm sure some of the readers are thinking this is no big deal, but it is. How many times are we told on a daily basis that we live in the richest country in the world? This is a outrage. It may not be a sexy topic like torture, or bombing Iran but it goes to the core of the mental health of our children.
I can think of no eloquent way to write about the feelings flowing through me. I was one of the kids that had to carry the brown bag lunch to school. I was never lucky enough to have anything good enough in it to trade with the other kids. Two slices of bread and a cold fried egg, or maybe a single slice of bologna was my lunch. No chips, no cookies, no fruit except on a very rare day. I watched with envy as the other kids dumped out their Superman Lunchboxs with a thermos of hot soup or choc. milk and a thick sandwich and lots of goodies to go with it. I usually sat alone to avoid being embarrassed. Of course sitting alone opened me up to all kinds of barbs. If they weren't about being poor, I was call stuckup, a loner, a snob, someone without friends, etc. and it hurt. It hurt bad.
The cheese sandwich, they say, has become a badge of shame for the children, who get teased about it by their classmates. One student cried when her macaroni and cheese was replaced with a sandwich. A little girl hid in a restroom to avoid getting one. Many of the sandwiches end up untouched or tossed whole in the garbage. Sometimes kids pound them to pieces....A year ago, he said, a cafeteria worker took away Christopher's pizza and forced him in front of his friends to pick up a sandwich instead. A similar incident occurred when Christopher was in the third grade. "The kid was humiliated," said his father, who added that he did not realize he owed money, $7.50.
For seven dollars and fifty god damn cents our school systems have sunk to the level of shaming our children. The shame should be ours, not the kids. We have allowed the Republicans to keep cutting the funds to our schools until this is the results. The freaking tax cuts have become more important than our kids and what they have to eat. We can spend billions to fight a war we shouldn't be in, we spend billions in foreign aid, yet shame our children on a daily basis over 5 or 10 bucks.
I honestly don't know where to go with this story. My kids are grown and out on their own so this doesn't effect my family directly, yet it does, if you know what I mean. This story is about California, but I'm sure that Ca. isn't the only place with this problem. Who is lobbying for these kids? Abramoff ? Duke Cunningham ? Democrats ? Oh, I know, No Child Left Behind right? Guess what, you don't learn shit on a empty stomach.
One last note for those of you who have yet gone and read the article. We all know that most kids love Peanutbutter and Jelly sandwiches right ? Why are the schools at least not giving the kids PBandJ ?
Peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches are a common alternate meal, but not a very effective one.
"It seemed to be one of the children's very favorite meals, so that wasn't productive," said Beth Taylor, nutrition director for the Johnston County School District in North Carolina, where such sandwiches were tried. Taylor said switching to vegetable and fruit trays changed everything. Among last week's menu items for students with lunch balances: crunchy cole slaw, fried squash and steamed cabbage. "The outstanding debt has been reduced to nothing," she said.
No child left behind my ass, fried squash and steamed cabbage, just the thoughts about any of this turns my stomach.
Update: I made a mistake when I stated this was a Ca. problem. When I went back and re-read the article after reading some of the comments, I thought I should add this part :
Most schools across the country have introduced alternate meals, said Erik Peterson, a spokesman for the School Nutrition Assn., an Alexandria, Va.-based organization for school nutrition professionals.
Orange County's Capistrano Unified School District serves crackers with peanut butter or cheese. The Los Angeles Unified School District gives children half a sandwich and a piece of fruit. Peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches are a common alternate meal, but not a very effective one.