63-year-old Marco Parma, headmaster of Garofani school in Rozano near Milan has been forced to resign after he cancelled all Christmas festivities so as not to hurt non-Christians and non-religious sensibilities. He proposed a January 21st non-religious 'winter concert' instead.
His indulgent political correctness however backfired after he came under fire from the prime minister and even Muslim parents. Italy's prime minister, Matteo Renzi (pictured above) who labelled the move a "big mistake" said:
"Debate and dialogue doesn't mean drowning identities in an indistinct & insipid form of political correctness. All Italians, both non-religious and Christians, will never give up Christmas.
A Muslim parent at the school, Mahmoud El Kheir - who is originally from Egypt - said: "Who are us Muslims to say what can happen at an Italian school? We are guests in this country. I hope the public understand that the decision was not made because of a request by Muslim parents".
His wife, Laila Magar, said their twins, Fatma and Yassin, took part in Christmas celebrations at the school and sang "traditional Catholic songs" with the other children.
"Why create a problem that doesn’t exist", she said.
