I am feeling sad. La Cantonera was a beautiful project in the Canaries run by charismatic and committed school leaders. We were not working with them directly but they were friends. Now the government is pressuring to close the school down.
The town hall tells them that the land their school is on does not have the right permits.
The public prosecutor tells them that all children that are registered in the school must be enrolled in official schools. If not, the Social Services can step in and take those children away from their parents within 24 hours.
Nothing about this situation is good. The project seemed to have a solid base in good practice, there were trained teachers in the school and the parents were all on board.
Like I said, we were not involved directly in this project and do not know the precise details, but it makes me sad when children are forced into conformity, when parents are bullied into putting their children into schools they do not want.
I’m not sure there is much we can more than give moral support, but I am sure the school leaders would be grateful for any show of support on their Facebook page. Take a moment and say a kind word.
https://www.facebook.com/LaCantonera/
What do you need?
What do you need to make your case for a school? It seems that a school will be vulnerable to the whims of a Prosecutor until a precedent is set. Let’s be clear about this. There are schools with less coherent visions and less qualified staff than La Cantonera that continue to function in other parts of Spain and Europe.
It is simply not just that religious schools and superstitious schools are encouraged when schools that offer freedom are hounded. It is simply not just.
