Read the Original Article HERE
Law
Virginia students suspended for wearing Confederate flags on clothes
Students at a Virginia high school were suspended from a day of school. The students had worn clothes decorated with the Confederate battle flag. More than 150 years ago, the flag was flown by the Southern states, which fought against the North in the Civil War. The Confederate states wanted to keep slavery.
The flag cannot be worn in school, said officials at Christiansburg High School.
The students said they wore the flag to protest the school rule.
Fighting About A Flag
They said that wearing the flag expressed their freedom of speech. They believe they should have the right to express their thoughts and feelings. A total of 23 students were suspended from school for wearing the flag. They were punished by having to stay home from school.
Brenda Drake is with the Montgomery County schools. She said that students at half of all American middle schools and high schools are not allowed to wear the Confederate flag. About 8 percent of Christiansburg students are black and more than 80 percent are white.
Drake said students have not been allowed to wear Confederate flag symbols since 2002. That year, there were many fights between black and white students broke out. Some of them were caused by students wearing the Confederate flag. She said the violence continues at the school today.
Freedom Or Student Safety?
Drake said that freedom of speech is important to the district. She added that it has to make sure all students are safe.
High school junior Zach Comer was one of the students who protested Thursday morning. He said the school unfairly selects out the Confederate battle flag and those who fly it.
Comer said the flag was not racist. "Everyone else can wear whatever shirts they want but we're not," he said.
Comer said he wore a Confederate flag draped over his shoulders at the protest. He also wore a Confederate flag belt buckle and a T-shirt with a Confederate flag.
South Carolina Church Shootings
Some people argue that the Confederate flag is a proud symbol of Southern history. Others call it as a symbol of hatred and slavery. In June, a white man was accused of gunning down nine people at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina. Before the killings, he posed in pictures with the Confederate flag.
Since then, some have wondered if Confederate flags and statues should be in public places.
Chet Morley graduated from Christiansburg High this year. Morley said he saw students wearing clothing with the Confederate battle flag. Teachers sometimes told students they were not supposed to wear it. Others ignored it.
Symbol Of Slavery?
Morley, who is black, said seeing the flag bothered him, but he never said anything around his white classmates. Morley said the flag made him think of slavery. His stepfather is a descendant of a slave. His father's family likely has slave roots as well.
Dalton Reedy is one of the student protesters. Reedy said he wore a T-shirt, belt buckle, bandanna and necklace with the Confederate battle flag to school. When the school officials told the students they could not go inside wearing the flag during the protest, "We said no," he said.
Reedy said he grew up with the flag. "It has nothing to do with racism."
Reedy said his ancestors fought for the Confederacy. He said he does not believe the school's anti-flag rule is fair.
Southern Pride
Reedy's mother said that she was proud of her son for "standing up for what he believes in."
"He's not one of these people to sit back and complain about it at home and do nothing to make a difference," said his mother, Angie Craiger. "Why are they trying to begrudge him for his beliefs?"
Comer said that students plan to continue the protest. They will wear their Confederate clothing again, he said.
"We definitely got a point through today," Comer said. "We set out to accomplish something today and we way overachieved it."
No comments:
Post a Comment