Subway’s faux pas
A lot of homeschoolers are up in arms over Subway’s explicit exclusion of homeschoolers from their story-writing current contest. They are especially grieved because the grand prize is grand indeed: over $5,000 in sports equipment. Somebody’s local homeschool co-op could have benefited greatly from this prize.
I know I’m setting myself up for attack (should I create a new category called “making trouble”?), but I have a hard time feeling that this is anything more than a simple faux pas on the part of Subway. I don’t know Subway’s record or their position on homeschooling or other issues, but the circumstances and Subway’s answer certainly don’t sound like an attack upon the legitimacy of homeschooling.
If we take Subway’s answer at face value, it seems very reasonable that they want to limit the contest to those who are part of a larger group which could benefit from the exceedingly generous (and obviously group-oriented) prize:
We are deeply sorry that the Subway contest has offended you and thank you for voicing your concern. Our intention was never to make independent schooled children feel discriminated against or excluded from this specific promotion. Throughout the course of the year Scholastic runs a number of contests and sweepstakes that are open to all teachers and students. The eligibility of this contest in particular was solely put in place to award a large group of children with the grand prize of $5,000 worth of athletic equipment. We do however understand how home-schooled children could benefit from this type of prizing and will make sure eligibility is open to everyone in future promotions.
To show our gratitude for bringing this matter to our attention, please send us the ages of your children and your address and we would be happy to send you a complimentary book to share with them. We truly appreciate your feedback and will make sure a similar situation does not happen again.
I’m sorry, but I have a hard time getting offended at this answer. It appears they didn’t want the entire grand prize going to a single family and it simply didn’t occur to The Subway Powers that a homeschooler could be required to donate the grand prize to an appropriate organization of his/her choice.
I do feel it’s sad that they excluded so many excellent students who could have contributed greatly to the competition. The idea to require a homeschooler to donate the grand prize to a group is a great one, but I can’t say I would have thought of that alternative. In a world that is so full of hostility toward Christians and homeschoolers, I’m not quite ready to boycott or even take offense over a simple lack of creativity.
What do you think? Am I being naive?
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Filed under: homeschooling
No, I am with you here! I think it was simply a mistake, they did not realize how it sounds, but I would blame Scholastic more than Subway if anyone. There are many things that homeschoolers are excluded from and this is a small thing to me. I am not a big one on boycotting though anyhow and have not been to Subway in a long time as we can’t afford it anymore!
No, you aren’t being naive. This is a non-battle. If Subway were being ugly about it, that would be a different story. They aren’t, they merely dropped the ball. I don’t believe we should boycott Subway either, as has been suggested on other blogs. Now, I think we should just sit tight and see how they deal with all the brouhaha. And what their next essay contest looks like.
I happen to agree with you. I didn’t see how excluding our family from that much athletic equipment was offensive. Had the prize been more applicable to most homeschooling families, then I might have been more upset.
What bothers me the most is how offended everyone is getting over it. People get offended over everything nowadays. It’s actually is quite exhausting trying to keep up with who is offended by who. You almost cannot say or do anything without offending someone.
I doubt Subway meant any harm, and by their thoughtful response, it’s clear they didn’t mean to offend anyone.
I agree with you on this one. At first glance I got a little angered, but once I read the whole thing I realized they weren’t doing it out of outright discrimination. I think we acting alot like everyone else (the world) when they are discriminated against. Jesus said if we belong to him we will have trouble and be discriminated against. I believe our American culture is so ingrained in even us Christians that it is hard to step back from it all and see the situation as Christ would and handle it in that way. Just my 2 cents
I agree with you, Martha, Mother Hen and Kacie. I could write more but you/they already said it well. However, put your padding on just in case.
honestly, I’m a bit embarrassed that we (as homeschoolers) caused such a ruckus that they felt the need to issue such a statement. Any private group can offer a competition to anyone at any time; yet we wanted to ‘get our hackles up’ cause we weren’t invited to participate?!
Boy, we sure showed THEM how godly we homeschoolers are!
I completely agree with you. We certainly don’t get upset when we’re “excluded” from state requirements for vaccinations or academic testing. And I know Subway is not the government, but I’m just saying. We don’t mind exclusions when they benefit us. There are soooo many of these silly little contests; I just can’t work up the energy to even care about this one.
We are with you over here. How sad that homeschoolers too, have fallen into the trap of feeling like we are “entitled” to what everyone else has. This is the type of attitude I’m trying to train my children not to have.
I feel like Subway’s response was gracious and kind. Too bad some of the homeschoolers were not.
I must be really out of the loop. I hadn’t even heard about it.
the only thing that upset me was the fact that they came out and said that this was not for homeschoolers. I understand that they are thinking in a box and do not see that we just like a school kid can pick a place to give the stuff to. We are a military family and we could give the sport stuff to our rec center. We use it every week just like a school. heck, so do the school kids!
Just my thoughts…
No, I agree with you, Kim. I don’t think they were trying or meaning to make any broad statement about the legitimacy of homeschooling or anything like that. Obviously the prize would have been great for a hs coop or something similar, but I really don’t think it’s anything we need to get all offended about.
I agree with you too. My kids would not have wanted to enter but i was still upset at first. Until i heard of the prize. I would not have thought of giving away the prize either. Have a blessed day.
You’re not being naive. You are spot on. I’d never heard of this ruckus until about 5 minutes ago when I ready about it on Crystal Paine’s blog. Thanks for saying something about it as well.
My husband and I were talking about this last night. We agree with you. I think maybe homeschoolers are getting a little too offended about this one.
Well, I am kind of in the middle on this one. I do think it was inappropriate for them to exclude homeschoolers, who are private schoolers in their own right. However, I do not think they necessarily had a malicious intention, and intentions are important to be sure! I
have read a lot of responses to this matter, and I am upset when I see hateful, nasty ones. That does not accomplish anything, and makes home educators look mean and petty. But, I see nothing wrong with a kind, well-worded letter, or a personal choice to boycott until the situation is rectified to a person’s satisfaction.
I do see it as discrimination, but not as an effort to undermine homeschoolers or malign them.
I am a second-generation homeschooler, and I can remember back in the early 1980’s when my parents and others were fighting hard for the rights we enjoy in homeschooling now. So, I think it is important to voice our opinion whenever something comes up, even something comparatively small like this. It just needs to be done in the right spirit, which I see some are doing and others are not.
You can read my take on this here:
http://thefullquiverhomeschoolhouse.wordpress.com/2008/05/27/subways-discrimination-against-homeschoolers/
When I got AFA’s email promoting a boycott my first thought was, “That’s a bit harsh isn’t it?” While I did end up sending an email, it wasn’t a threat, it was a request for a reason why homeschoolers were excluded. I really appreciate their answer. I think a footlong meatball sub sounds mighty tasty right about now.
I think you called this one right.
We are a first generation homeschooling family, (oldest is 3 this weekend) and until we decided to look into home schooling (we live in CA), we always thought of school in terms of brick and mortar schools, private or otherwise. It is a common train of though in many people.
A lot of people just don’t think about home schooling or realize that there are groups of us that get together to play and share resources!
I think you did the right thing by commenting, and I think they will do the right thing in the future, and that this time they did the best with what they knew, and now they know better!
Well, it doesn’t look like my $.02 is needed, but I agree with you.
I don’t understand why everyone seems so offended by..well, everything…
I completely agree. With so many bigger battles to fight I don’t know why we would spend our energy on forcing a privately owned company to include us in a contest. I think homeschoolers spend so much time having to defend themselves that sometimes we see a fight where there isn’t one. This is the kind of thing that makes people think we’re some sort of emotional fringe group. We shouldn’t play in to that stereotype.
If their next contest excludes home schools, then I think there would be a reason to fuss.
They dropped the ball leaving others feeling disappointed, but their logic seems fine.
I am with all of you…as a side note it seems that homeschoolers (parents) are losing our homeschooling and parental rights…we ought to pick our battles wisely…this is not one I wish to worry about.
Plus as quoted by a local pastor here in my town about this issue “To bring this issue into a Biblical perspective, demanding one’s rights is not taught in Scripture. Sadly enough, when we react in this manner, the world tends to scorn what they perceive as the ‘inferiority complex’ of the homeschooling community. The glory of God far more important than what the world may deny us.”
[...] hope I didn’t step on too many toes by refusing to get worked up over Subway’s faux pas, but here’s something that I do think we all should get more outspoken about: the [...]
[...] hope I didn’t step on too many toes by refusing to get worked up over Subway’s faux pas, but here’s something that I do think we all should get more outspoken about: the [...]