»Squid Game«: Schools in New York prohibit costumes for the Netflix series

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Scene from »Squid Game«

Photo: Youngkyu Park / AP

Some schools in New York State have banned costumes from the popular Netflix series "Squid Game" for Halloween.

As the head of the school inspectorate of the Fayetteville-Manlius school district announced on Thursday, the children are not allowed to wear the costumes "because they could convey messages glorifying violence."

On the last day of school before Halloween, students in US schools often come to class in costumes.

The South Korean series »Squid Game« is the world's most successful series on the US streaming portal Netflix - 111 million in just 27 days.

In it, highly indebted people fight for their survival while playing children's games.

The losers are cruelly killed in each round, and the winners receive a large sum of money.

In the series, all players wear green tracksuits, while the overseers are dressed in red overalls and wear black masks with symbols.

First incidents in German schoolyards

The series also attracted many viewers in Germany - and created a need for discussion in schools.

"Teachers have reported that this series is also being re-enacted in their schools," said the President of the Bavarian Teachers' Association (BLLV), Simone Fleischmann, of the dpa news agency.

It is true that children and adolescents also played other series or computer games over and over again, that was completely normal.

"But that already has a new quality and it causes excitement."

In Augsburg, there should have been arguments among schoolchildren because of the series, reports the Bayerischer Rundfunk.

“We see children re-enacting the games from the series.

Schoolchildren are slapped or insulted, «said Michaela Zipper, media education consultant for the school authority, the broadcaster.

In addition, invitation cards for »Squid Game« are said to have been found in elementary and middle schools.

jok / AFP