The morality of using children in Independence Day celebrations

[aneeshm]

Today was India's Independence day, and I attended the flag hoisting ceremony conducted by my college (it's a set of institutions, and it was a huge event, with ten or more institutions attending).

Though the whole thing was quite spectacular, there was one aspect I was slightly uncomfortable with - children being part of the festivities as performers.

I am of the opinion that young children are not qualified or old enough to give informed consent as to whether or not they wish to participate in these functions, of whether or not they are patriots or nationalists. So making them participate seems a bit morally and ethically shady.

Sure, it sounds and looks great - "Look at the little patriots!" - but we have to consider the rights of the "little patriots", too.

[Lorizael]

Society says this is up to the parents. If the parents want to raise flag-waving partiots, that's their choice.

If you want to argue that parents' don't have such a right, then that's a much bigger issue.

[Zkribbler]

Shirley Temple starred in the Little Rebel in which she was a Southern bellette, and another movie where her dad had gone off to fight the Boers. And kids still do political type stuff all the time.

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by Lorizael
Society says this is up to the parents. If the parents want to raise flag-waving partiots, that's their choice.

If you want to argue that parents' don't have such a right, then that's a much bigger issue.

This wasn't something done by parents, it was done by a school which was part of this group of institutions. And attendance was pretty much compulsory (though not for us).

[Pekka]

aneesh, that's a good point. THat's how the education system works from the very beginning, when students don't ask any question or question the system. That's when you teach them that the country you're in is the greatest, sing this song, it's the national song and it guarantees we are all so great and all kinds of BS.

You need to really promote this stuff when they're young, that's when you get them. If you don't get them young, you are unlikely to get them as they are older.

Is it a good thing to do? If you ask me, no, not really.

But about this party, I think it's not so bad. The kids are most likely thinking they're just performing and they like to perform so.. that's all. They don't have to understand what they're taking part in, because they couldn't understand it. The best they can do is repeat what the teacher and parents told them, "I live in the greatest country yippeee!". So most likely they're just performing for the sake of that and not really bothering their heads with the meaning of the event.

[Lorizael]

Originally posted by aneeshm
This wasn't something done by parents, it was done by a school which was part of this group of institutions. And attendance was pretty much compulsory (though not for us).

If there isn't some option to opt out of this that the parents and the child can take, then that kind of starts to bother me.

[Shrapnel12]

If they were forced, and it was not what the parents wanted, then it's wrong, but there is nothing wrong with having children take part in celebrations that we ourselves cherish. The kids are smart enough that when they grow up, they will make their own decisions.

[Pekka]

"The kids are smart enough that when they grow up, they will make their own decisions."


Right...

[Kidlicious]

Raise your own kids and teach them to burn the flag.

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by Shrapnel12
The kids are smart enough that when they grow up, they will make their own decisions.

No. The kids are stupid.

[LordShiva]

Originally posted by Shrapnel12
The kids are smart enough that when they grow up, they will make their own decisions.

QFT. Nobody is going to think "Oh, one day every year I would dance around to music, so now I need to be a fascist."

[Alexander's Horse]

lighten up, its a holiday

[DanS]

So long as they aren't goosestepping, it's all good to me.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

One of the two functions of a school in a democratic society is to foster a sense of citizenship. Participation in national holiday events, like learning patriotic songs in school and requiring civics classes, is merely an extention of that.

And, frankly, kids don't consent to a damned thing about their educations. Why draw the line here?

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by Rufus T. Firefly
One of the two functions of a school in a democratic society is to foster a sense of citizenship. Participation in national holiday events, like learning patriotic songs in school and requiring civics classes, is merely an extention of that.

And, frankly, kids don't consent to a damned thing about their educations. Why draw the line here?

Do you learn how to use "citizenship" and "democratic" that way in school?