His old toys set aside and displayed on a cloth on the ground, on the sidewalk. And to attract the coming and going of people with masks in front of the supermarket there is a sign that says: "I would like to buy a computer, will you help me?". In Milan, in the Porta Romana district, a 13-year-old began his collection to buy a computer and be able to play and do his homework online in this unusual end of the school year. His initiative can become a symbol of solidarity action for all his peers who claim the right to education in the Covid emergency.
Grappling with the third grade thesis, Simone tells those who ask him for explanations that the cell phone is not enough to take lessons. "At home the computer is already there, but there are five of us and the needs are many - explains Mum -. This is why we pushed Simone to make him understand the sense of sacrifice and that if you want one of his own you have to work to buy it".
So the thirteen-year-old under the house put up for sale the old amusements of the past, the puppets, the erasers, the pens and his beloved role playing cards, those that have the most value for him. All at the symbolic price of twenty cents. Maybe he will manage to reach just over ten euros, snatching a smile from the people of the neighborhood. But the result could be much bigger than he can imagine.
My young neighbor (13 years old) sells some of his small toys on the sidewalk. To buy a new computer for online lessons.
They only have one at home and it is not enough anymore .... here you have to mobilize the whole condominium. That's all from Milan! #Librocuore
"From his example, a fundraiser could be created for children who have no tools to teach," explains Elena Granata, professor of social sciences at the Politecnico di Milano, who lives in the same neighborhood and was struck by the Simone affair. "In most unequipped families the lessons are followed by mobile phones - he adds -. I myself did a small test with my 50 students to understand who had a computer and a good 20% even among my students access from mobile. Learning certainly needs more effective tools than a mobile phone ".
Yesterday the books, today the PCs: the Covid era now teaches that a book and a notebook are no longer enough to be able to study, but the naive desire to ask remains unchanged. Apparently only a computer, which now also represents a right.