SCHOOLS ARE BANNING PRIME
- C van der Vyver
- May 12, 2023
- 2 min read
and I’m not okay with it.
PRIME has taken the world by storm!
And that is thanks to the intensive marketing - using the faces of two popular YouTubers.
Logan Paul and Olajide Olayinka Williams, better known as KSI or "JJ", are both promoters of the drink - not owners as some may think.
Their young, and dedicated, fans have made sure to secure their own bottle of the popular beverage.
The drink has been officially brought to South Africa and is being sold at Checkers stores nationwide for R40.
Previously, people imported and sold this drink for the hefty price of R400, some even going for R800.
The new-found accessibility of the drink in South Africa has made it very popular, especially amongst young people.
Learners have persuaded their parents into buying them some to pack into their lunchboxes.
Schools do not seem to like this and have taken action to ban it.
Their decision is supported by studies showing that caffeine-containing drinks are dangerous for children.
Prime hydration drink, recently introduced in South Africa, does not fall under this category. Electrolytes are present in this drink, rather than caffeine, which makes it a "hydrating" beverage - as the marketing suggests.
I am worried that this may be part of a more significant problem in which schools unjustly exert control over the behaviour of their students. Abusing their authority over vulnerable and impressionable youth.
When I was in primary school (or middle school for any American folk) fidget spinners became quite the trend. The school was quickly made aware of this and swiftly banned them from classes.
This example is intended to show that the banning of popular items is nothing new in South African schools.
Schools should let children be children: if children want to obsess over some YouTubers and a cool drink, let them.
As long as they're not hurting each other, what's the issue?
What are your thoughts on the popularisation of Prime? And should schools be banning it?
Let me know what you think in the comments below.
https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/sa-schools-join-international-counterparts-in-banning-prime-drink-b1644121-e1d0-4ff5-8559-02c499d42fe3
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