‘It's madness!’ Azerbaijani family harassed in Yekaterinburg over district head's gifts

In Yekaterinburg, a large family was harassed over New Year gifts. They took part in the «Wish Tree» campaign. The ball with their letter ended up with the head of the Zheleznodorozhny District, Vitaly Pershin.

The three children from the family of Azerbaijani origin — 7-year-old Ali, his 8-year-old brother Vagif, and their older sister — asked for a scooter, a sweet gift, and a handicraft kit. After a post with their joyful photos appeared on the district administration«s website, a wave of negativity hit the parents.

‘First, there was a reaction to our post on the VKontakte page, a lot of negative feedback. A lot. And when we closed the comments, the children«s father called my deputy and said that people were visiting their personal page and writing unpleasant words. He said they were very upset and ready to return the gifts, just to be left alone,’ Zheleznodorozhny District head Vitaly Pershin told E1.RU.

The district head noted that one of the children in the family is hearing-impaired. The older brother and sister already attend school, and the younger boy still goes to kindergarten but dreams of sitting at a school desk. Their father is a construction worker, and their mother is a homemaker. The parents have been Russian citizens for 20 years.

‘I read these negative comments, it reeks of extremism. It«s madness! New Year is a holiday for representatives of all nationalities living in our country. Especially for children. In this family, one child is disabled,’ Vitaly Pershin noted.

Officials persuaded the father to keep the gifts so that at least the children would have pleasant memories of the holiday.

Earlier, Yekaterinburg residents told what gifts spoiled their holiday mood.