Swedish boarding school shut

[Keel M.]

Yikes!!

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's school inspectorate ordered the temporary closure of a prestigious boarding school on Wednesday after two new boys were burned with electric irons in the latest bullying scandal at the elite establishment.

The move came after several students of the Lundsberg school in central Sweden, whose alumni include Prince Carl Philip, the youngest child of Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf, were reported to the police for the hazing ritual over the weekend.

The school inspectorate said the school would be closed from Thursday for up to six months.

It is only the second time the inspectorate has ordered the immediate closure of a school, Sweden's TT news agency said.

Lundsberg was founded in 1896 and has about 200 boys and girls of junior high school and high school age.

Full story

Edited August 29, 2013 by Child of Bast

[Wickian]

I've never seen the appeal or purpose of hazing myself, but then I don't get enjoyment out of making other people uncomfortable or causing them pain(physical/mental).

[Keel M.]

Me either.

[MacsMom]

Makes no sense. I can KIND OF see it if you want to prove some sort of mental and physical toughness in order to be a member of a group, but these kids were all stuck at this boarding school.

Just like the hazing incident in Florida for the school band member who died. Hazing to be in a marching band??!!! Man, I remember the time when only the nerd kids were in the school band and they were happy to accept EVERYONE and ANYONE.

Edited August 29, 2013 by MacsMom

[Purplos]

OK, bullying and hazing should be punished and stopped, of course, but I'm a little confused how burning 2 boys with an iron necessitates closing the entire school for up to 6 months? What about all the other kids that go there?

[bLu3 de 3n3rgy]

If you actually read the article and what it hints at over the years - including hazings that degenerated into sexual assaults and other humiliations, then there was serious stuff going on there that was beyond 'acceptable' and is most probably involving the law now if sexual assaults were taking place. The key being that the 'latest' was reported to the police so now a criminal investigation will be in place which is probably why the school has to be closed for up to 6 months because you are dealing with minors. I would imagine now all sorts of things will be revealed and claimed.

[DeWitz]

If you actually read the article and what it hints at over the years - including hazings that degenerated into sexual assaults and other humiliations, then there was serious stuff going on there that was beyond 'acceptable' and is most probably involving the law now if sexual assaults were taking place. The key being that the 'latest' was reported to the police so now a criminal investigation will be in place which is probably why the school has to be closed for up to 6 months because you are dealing with minors. I would imagine now all sorts of things will be revealed and claimed.

Having lived in Sweden for 2 years (as a "resident worker," spouse of a national, and working) I can attest that Swedish authorities--and the populace--take this kind of dangerous and irrational behavior very seriously. Especially if there has been a demonstrated pattern of aberrant (per local understanding) behavior, there will be an outcry and judicial response. There is great sensitivity in Sweden about the influence of "American" values, which might be perceived in the 'hazing ritual' pattern here. It is indisputable that the US has a more violent culture than most of Scandinavia--including Sweden, which hates our popular culture at the same time it loves it (gangsta rap; Miley Cyrus;TV shows; movies; etc.)

In contrast, Swedish penalties, compared to the US, tend to be light, especially for juveniles. The culture clash continues.

[bLu3 de 3n3rgy]

Having lived in Sweden for 2 years (as a "resident worker," spouse of a national, and working) I can attest that Swedish authorities--and the populace--take this kind of dangerous and irrational behavior very seriously. Especially if there has been a demonstrated pattern of aberrant (per local understanding) behavior, there will be an outcry and judicial response. There is great sensitivity in Sweden about the influence of "American" values, which might be perceived in the 'hazing ritual' pattern here. It is indisputable that the US has a more violent culture than most of Scandinavia--including Sweden, which hates our popular culture at the same time it loves it (gangsta rap; Miley Cyrus;TV shows; movies; etc.)

In contrast, Swedish penalties, compared to the US, tend to be light, especially for juveniles. The culture clash continues.

In all honesty i doubt it has anything to do with the Miley Cyrus 'etc quoted culture' spreading to the western countries.

If anything this form of what is now in this day and age called 'hazing', whether Americanised or not, has always been prevalent in any elitist institution, or setting. This isn't just an American problem associated with gangland or prestigious society. It is a bullying culture that is permeating our society at all levels and backgrounds now. But thank you for your perspective it is good to know that despite the law, the Swedish do take this sort of thing seriously.

[DeWitz]

In all honesty i doubt it has anything to do with the Miley Cyrus 'etc quoted culture' spreading to the western countries.

If anything this form of what is now in this day and age called 'hazing', whether Americanised or not, has always been prevalent in any elitist institution, or setting. This isn't just an American problem associated with gangland or prestigious society. It is a bullying culture that is permeating our society at all levels and backgrounds now. But thank you for your perspective it is good to know that despite the law, the Swedish do take this sort of thing seriously.

Thanks for your opinion. My son, still in Sweden (he's Swedish) is, at age 16, very critical about all the popular culture that he thinks is injected into Sweden by the US!

[Purplos]

So people who are perhaps guilty of sexual assault and other assaults are sent home to well-scattered towns or cities instead of kept on hand for a police investigation to go on. I still don't get why the school was closed, but I suppose that's just how they do things there.

I mean... someone was raped in my high school, and they didn't even give us the afternoon off classes. The cops just came in and did their jobs.

[MacsMom]

Thanks for your opinion. My son, still in Sweden (he's Swedish) is, at age 16, very critical about all the popular culture that he thinks is injected into Sweden by the US!

Just hope he stays that way. American pop culture is crap.

[bLu3 de 3n3rgy]

The school obviously has severe issues as it has been criticized by school inspectors several times over recent years- so it isn't a stand alone event but more of a culture problem that's got out of hand. It is also a boarding school which makes everything slightly different.

The article says;

"It's startling that something like this can happen in light of the measures the school has presented to the school inspectorate concerning its efforts to prevent violations," the directorate said in a statement.

Maybe they had no other option but to close the school because everything else has failed, or perhaps those who finance the school have threatened to pull their funds. Money is usually what gets things happening or closed down.

[DeWitz]

The school obviously has severe issues as it has been criticized by school inspectors several times over recent years- so it isn't a stand alone event but more of a culture problem that's got out of hand. It is also a boarding school which makes everything slightly different.

The article says;

Maybe they had no other option but to close the school because everything else has failed, or perhaps those who finance the school have threatened to pull their funds. Money is usually what gets things happening or closed down.

It's a prestigious boarding school with a "reputation" to live up to (or down to, depending on one's view of the wealthy). Sweden still exhibits a relatively high degree of concern about appearances, reputation, comportment, etc. It doesn't surprise me that the place is being shut down for overhaul, administratively, ethically, legally--in all regards.

Sweden, despite its Germanic language and (previously overwhelming) number of fair-skinned 'caucasians,' is no mini-US, either in history, government, religious ethos, judicial and correctional systems and more. Its distinct culture still values conventional or traditional propriety. Even family and social life have standards and regimentation that would strike most (native born) North Americans as something odd, between quaint and bizarre.

My earlier comment about "gangsta rap, Miley Cyrus," etc. was not about cause and effect (as in, "American pop culture is causing bad Swedish behavior"). It's a very real correlation, however, in a small, previously homogenous culture (well into the 80's) now infused with a foreign popular culture of violence, arid sexuality (the view of Sweden as some libertine society of constant sexual excess is inaccurate), including pop music which mixes those two elements. Yet many (especially younger) Swedes embrace American pop culture, leading to lots of confusion regarding identity (including a resurgence of fascism/white supremacy virtually unknown in post WWII years-reject everything "non-Swedish") and cross-generational struggle not unlike the 1960's.

Edited August 31, 2013 by szentgyorgy

[Kaa-Tzik]

(the view of Sweden as some libertine society of constant sexual excess is inaccurate)

And I do not know why this view became prevalent, same as all being drunk and miserable. Perhaps people see a few films by Ingmar Bergman and think it is reality, or probably only hear about his films and a stereotype is formed in their minds.

[brlesq1]

This only reinforces my conviction that hazing should be just banned.

[Ealdwita]

I direct your attention to that wonderful (IMO) novel 'Tom Brown's School Days' by Thomas Hughes. Flashman was always my hero!