School Superintendent: 13-Star 'Betsy Ross' Flag Injects 'Hostility' and 'Hate'

A Michigan public school superintendent wrote in a published “letter to the community” that students at a high school football game injected “hate” and “hostility” because they waved a historical Betsy Ross flag that has 13 stars to represent the original 13 colonies.

The students waved the flag at a Sept. 9 football game at Houseman Field between Forest Hills Central and Ottawa Hills. The students also brought a Donald Trump for President banner to the event.

The superintendent received a complaint from a parent and then published the letter which is dated Sept. 12.

“And to wave a historical version of our flag, that to some symbolizes exclusion and hate, injects hostility and confusion to an event where no one intended to do so,” Forest Hills Public Schools Superintendent Daniel Behm wrote.

Behm continued with an apology: "To our gracious hosts — the students, families, staff, and community of Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills High School and Grand Rapids Public Schools — and to the student-athletes, coaches, officials, and supporters of both teams, we are truly sorry. These actions are not characteristic of our schools, our staff, our students, or our community, and they represent a lack of knowledge."

Forest Hills Public Schools released a statement that said the students wouldn’t be disciplined for the Betsy Ross flag and “it will be used as a teachable moment.”

The district said if the act occurs again, “Each situation would be addressed individually and in the context in which it occurs.”

Tim Bowen, who sells historical flags for the Little Rock, Arkansas company Flagandbanner.com, called the condemnation of the Betsy Ross flag “deplorable.”

“It is a historical flag. It was never used as a symbol of hate,” Bowen said. “This person needs to take a history lesson.”

Ronald Hall, a professor at Michigan State University and an expert on racial relations, didn’t return an email seeking comment. Daniel Valentine, spokesman for the national NAACP, said he sent an email from Michigan Capitol Confidential to Yvonne White, who is the president of the Michigan State Conference of the NAACP. White didn’t respond.

From his school system website: “
Welcome to Forest Hills Public Schools, one of our nation’s great public school systems! Our schools and our community are focused on a common aim of doing what is best for children. Throughout the history of our school district, our community and our staff have given their time, their talents, and their treasure to ensure that each child has what she or he needs to unlock their unique and limitless potential. These gifts manifest themselves in our smaller schools, our small teacher to child ratio, and our belief in keeping kids “younger longer” and not artificially accelerating the natural process of becoming an adult. We feel strongly that children need space and time to grow, nurtured by high expectations and loving support. Doing what is best for kids certainly entails providing each and every child with the very best education possible. While we are proud of our top state rankings and the national recognition our schools and faculty have received over the years, these rankings and recognition do little to help a child learn, grow, and thrive. Transforming a budding reader into a lifelong scholar or preparing a dependent child to be a selfless leader as a caring adult takes hard work, dedication, knowledge, and skill. We are committed to recruiting and retaining the very best educators and staff who know how to deliver personalized learning and remain focused on our vision of “all learners achieving individual potential.”

Doing what is best for kids is about more than a great education. It also means instilling in children the character and values to ethically and responsibly use exemplary scholarship to serve the needs of an interdependent world. Children take their cues from those of us entrusted with their care. Therefore, when working with and for kids, we must always model the very best of the human condition. Toward this end, Forest Hills Public Schools lives by a set of written ideals we refer to as our Guiding Principles. These individual and organizational commitments constitute the unchanging values that lie at the heart of our district’s past and future success.

We hope you find this website to be a useful resource for information – whether you are a prospective family, parent, student, or a community stakeholder. Like all websites, you will be able to find lots of information, interesting news and facts, and helpful tools. However, even with the best modern technology has to offer, sometimes there is no substitute for a human connection. In this event, we invite you to stop by our district offices or call our main telephone number at (616) 493-8800, where we will be happy to help you.

Thank you for your interest in and your support of Forest Hills Public Schools.

Sincerely,

Daniel S. Behm
Superintendent
Forest Hills Public Schools”

Actually, I expected a Black Lives Matter/angry Hillary-clone. But democrat-socialist-bureaucrats come in all sizes and shapes and races.

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