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A teacher was banned from teaching in a French kindergarten after another teacher complained that his tattoos scared his son. The teacher has tattoos on his body, face and tongue, but ensures that other students and parents do not see tattoos as a problem.
Last year, the parents of a three-year-old boy complained to educational authorities at the Docteur Morere primary school in Palaiseau, a Paris suburb, claiming that their son had nightmares due to tattoos from Sylvain Helaine, who was not the one. your teacher.
Two months later, Helaine, 35, stopped teaching kindergarten children, but has continued to teach children from the age of six, a decision she considers “sad.” “All the students and their parents have always been nice to me because they basically knew me,” he told Reuters.
However, the teacher admits that the prejudice in relation to his tattoos harms him, before they knew him. “When people see me from afar, they assume the worst,” he lamented. Students are also initially surprised, he says, but after meeting him they also take him seriously and naturally.
Helaine also hopes that her tattoos will create a more inclusive environment for children who accept her and accept her appearance. “Perhaps when they are adults they are less racist, less homophobic and more open-minded,” he said.
Helaine started tattooing at the age of 27 and does not stop teaching children. “I love my job”
REUTERS / Charles Platiau
Despite the school’s pledge not to teach younger children again, as “their appearance can be terrifying,” Sylvain Helaine, a spokesperson for the local education authority, told Reuters she would not change her career. “I am an elementary school teacher. I love my job “.
The professor estimates that he has spent 460 hours on tattoos. He began tattooing his body at age 27 when he had “an existential crisis” while teaching at a private school in London. Since then, it never stopped. “Getting tattoos is my passion,” Helaine said.
