First they came for our cigarettes. Then they wanted to stamp out our Big Gulps. Now they’re on the verge of banning . . . childhood.
We’re not kidding: Schools across America are outlawing all kinds of activities that practically define being a kid, all for fear of injury or litigation.
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association, for instance, banned post-game handshakes between players after they led to fights (it later said it would allow them if “monitored”). In Nashua, NH, the Charlotte Avenue Elementary School banned the game of tag.
In our own backyard, Weber Middle School in Port Washington went even further and banned balls. Rough tag and cartwheels are also a no-go without supervision. And all that was just this week.
No one wants serious injuries (or lawsuits), of course. But getting a dodgeball sting is almost a rite of passage. These over-the-top prohibitions suck the fun out of life, and eliminating the wisdom and joys that comes from making decisions.
There was a day when schools promoted sports precisely because we believed that the rough-and-tumble of fair competition could teach children things: notably, that there are risks in this world, and that sometimes life stings.
Football’s Vince Lombardi once put it this way: “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.” In our zeal to protect our children from any risk of harm, we are shielding them from some of life’s most valuable lessons.