Heather Spohr wrote this HuffPo piece in 2015, and it was posted again on their Facebook page yesterday, to much heated debate, as always. And I sighed heavily. Are we seriously still arguing about this crap? Are people still seriously stupid enough to think that it's THAT big of a deal to just not send an allergen into a classroom where there's a kid who could DIE from it? Just line up to the right, all you selfish, ignorant, horrible trolls, so we can see who you are and be sure to never associate ourselves with you.
I'm tired of talking about this. I'm sick and tired of the snide comments on my local Facebook pages every September when we rehash the "No nuts and peanuts" rule for schools. What part don't you get? A kid could no longer exist because you feel like sending peanut butter to school. How is that even logical?
Look, I'm not sure classroom food bans are the answer in the long run, but I do know that for little kids, it's a good idea to protect them. I have written about this topic so many times, my fingers are sick of typing the same words: life is precious, peanut butter is not.
My kid desperately wants to eat Froot By the Foot for lunch every day, to the point where often his entire day's worth of food comes home uneaten. He's still alive, though, despite being deprived of food. And your kid will live, too. And guess what? So will that parent's child who could die a painful, terrifying death of anaphylaxis.
Every moment my child is away from me is scary. Will he accidentally contact an allergen? Will the people supervising him act quickly and inject him with epinephrine? Would it work? Will he live to see tomorrow?
Food allergies aren't preferences, they're a matter of life and death. They're not convenient, and none of us who lives with them enjoys tormenting you with our needs. But this is life for us. We're just trying to protect our kids the same way you're protecting yours. Except I care if all kids are safe, not just my own.
I just want this ridiculous discussion to come to a close.
Sphor is right. No sandwich is more important than a child's life.
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