Sunrise presenter Nar Barr has slammed a decision to ban a lollipop seller from high-fiving school children, branding it “un-Australian” during a fiery rant.
Mount Dandenong Primary School crossing supervisor John Goulden has been reprimanded by Victoria’s Yarra Ranges Council after just one parent complained.
The beloved lollipop man had been greeting students for four years before he was told he would have to abide by the council’s code of conduct rules.
“It’s totally ridiculous,” Barr said enthusiastically about the decision Thursday.
‘Yarra Ranges Council, you should be ashamed. Why can one person say what everyone in the community is saying?’
Lollipop man fist-bumping kids, what happened to Australia?
‘For the love of God, if you are from Yarra Ranges City Council, call us, or we will call you.
“This is not Australia. This is absolutely ridiculous.”
Sunrise presenter Nar Barr has slammed a decision to ban a man selling lollipops from high-fiving school children, branding it “un-Australian” during a fiery rant on Thursday.
Mount Dandenong Primary School crossing supervisor John Goulden was reprimanded by Yarra Ranges Council after just one parent complained
Co-host Monique Wright added that “it only took one Karen to ruin everyone’s fun.”
“If it’s a Karen or a Ken, we’ll be looking for them this morning,” Barr nodded.
Perth Mayor Basil Zempilas told Sunrise that 99.9 per cent of Australians would praise Goulden for doing “exactly what we want our elders to do”.
“You’re out there making a contribution, you’re out there making our kids feel safe, you’re making them feel welcome with a high five, for God’s sake,” he said.
“Common sense needs to regain its ground and it would be a good first step to dismiss and repeal this law. How ridiculous!”
“You wonder who at Yarra Ranges Council said ‘OK, we have a complaint, we need to address it’,” Barr said.
She asked Melbourne presenter Neil Mitchell if he thought there was a child safety issue in allowing the high fives to continue.
“They should and will reconsider. There are already 800 signatures on the petition and that number will increase with this exhibition,” he said.
‘I’ve had a look and there are 36 pages of instructions from VicRoads for traffic officers. They’re not allowed to vape, they’re not allowed to smoke, they’re not allowed to read newspapers, they’re not allowed to have a mobile phone, they’re not allowed to knit, but there’s nothing about high-fiving.
“And he says he’s been told off for calling the kids ‘honey.’ We’re concerned about the kids’ mental health. He’s doing exactly what he should.
“He’s interacting with them. He’s welcoming them.”
Perth Mayor Basil Zempilas told Sunrise that 99.9 per cent of Australians would praise Goulden for doing “exactly what we want our elders to do”.
Angry parents have rallied in support of Goulden, launching a petition with more than 1,000 signatures to allow him to continue greeting students.
Yarra Ranges Council said the parent who made the complaint was concerned Mr Goulden’s handshakes were a threat to student safety.
“Council has reminded the contractor currently supervising children at Mount Dandenong Primary School of the expectations of his role regarding interactions with children,” the council said in a statement.
Angry parents have rallied to support Goulden and launched an online petition to allow him to continue greeting his students.
School organizer and parent Rohan Bradley plans to take the petition to the board in hopes of having the decision reversed.
“I was very happy to support this and encourage people to speak out because (the ban) seemed like an injustice to the community,” she said. Herald of the Sun.
As of Thursday morning, the petition had gathered nearly 1,200 signatures online, as well as 45 signatures from students and school staff.
“John’s friendly high fives are truly a form of positive social interaction that helps improve children’s mental health in our community,” Bradley wrote.
“Their morning and evening handshakes have become a tradition that many children look forward to. A small gesture that symbolizes the warmth and kindness of our unique community.”