‘This Was The Last Straw That Sparkled Protest In My Teenage Son’s Heart’

A mother of a Lyceum student told about the conflict with the military science teacher who’s a fan of Lukashenka.

Volha, a reader of the Charter97.org website, shared her story about her son’s conflict with the Lukashist military science teacher, with us:

“My son has never been the first student in class, so he chose to enter the Minsk regional Lyceum. Since the beginning of the new academic year, the students have been obliged to wear bright-red vests. It may seem a small thing to an adult person but it became the last straw that sparkled protest in the heart of my teenage son. We had a conversation and convinced him that a vest should not become an obstacle on his way to education. We begged and pleaded, and somehow we managed to more or less convince him.

However, the class-master, who is also a so-called military science teacher, came to visit us in a few days. My son’s mood started tending towards “leave and never come back” again. We have had such a negative experience in school with a class-master who was a military man. I asked my son to stay for at least several more days.

However, Volha says it was not the end of the story.

“The class-master came and set an ultimatum that every student of the regional Lyceum must join the Belarusian Republican Youth Union, and this is not something to discuss, because if you study in a state educational establishment, you must support the state’s policy and ideology, and be a part of it.

So we quit the Lyceum, as people say, it’s better to have nothing than have it anywise. Deep in my heart, I am so proud of my son, I brought up a decent Belarusian, who has his own opinion and vision of this world, a person who did not agree to serve the system for a diploma.

My son was accepted to another educational establishment, and I hope he will peacefully study there and get a secondary professional education diploma. There, one somehow breathes more free. Without the red-and-green rugs and “military science teachers”.