Sometimes gum is no fun | The school edition
Yesterday, Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union released its “A Violent Education: Corporal Punishment of Children in U.S. Public Schools,” which examines the use of corporal punishment in schools across the U.S.
In the China Daily’s coverage of the report in today’s edition (“Corporal punishment seen rife in U.S. schools”), it noted that the infractions that can lead to punishment include, sadly, chewing gum:
Twenty-one US states still permit the use of corporal punishment in schools. In Texas and Mississippi children as young as 3 are struck for transgressions as minor as gum chewing, the report says.
(Incidentally, the sadly relevant picture of the “No Gum” sign comes from a wonderful biking blog called Dirty Picasso Ride, which included a nostalgic and photographic return to high school in its April 21, 2008 entry.)