The ring little Aiden brought to school may not have been the true ring of power, but it had enough controversy to get him suspended from a Kermit, Texas, school. Tolkien lore led a Texas boy to suspension after he brought his one ring to school. Kermit Elementary School officials called it a threat when the 9-year-old boy, Aiden Steward, in a playful act of make-believe, told a classmate he could make him disappear with a ring forged in fictional Middle Earths Mount Doom.
It sounded unbelievable, the boys father, Jason Steward, told the Daily News. He insists his son didnt mean anything by it.
The Stewards had just watched The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies days earlier, inspiring Aidens imagination and leading him to proclaim that he had in his possession the one ring to rule them all.
Kids act out movies that they see. When I watched Superman as a kid, I went outside and tried to fly, Steward said.
Aiden claimed Thursday he could put a ring on his friend's head and make him invisible like Bilbo Baggins, who stole Gollums "precious" in J.R.R. Tolkiens fantasy series The Lord of the Rings.
I assure you my son lacks the magical powers necessary to threaten his friends existence, the boy's father later wrote in an email. "If he did, I'm sure he'd bring him right back."
Principal Roxanne Greer declined to comment on the fourth-graders suspension, citing confidentiality policies, according to the Odessa American, who first reported Aidens troubles Friday.
The family moved to the Kermit Independent School District only six months ago, but its been nothing but headaches for Aiden. Hes already been suspended three times this school year.
Two of the disciplinary actions this year were in-school suspensions for referring to a classmate as black and bringing his favorite book to school: "The Big Book of Knowledge."
He loves that book. They were studying the solar system and he took it to school. He thought his teacher would be impressed, Steward said.
But the teacher learned the popular childrens encyclopedia had a section on pregnancy, depicting a pregnant woman in an illustration, he explained.
Poster Comment:

Don't hold your breath waiting for Obama or Holder to bring this up as an example of the fabled school to prison pipeline.