Oops, it's a dragon. Oh, well.
Posted on 09/19/2008 5:20:14 AM PDT by TornadoAlley3
School officials have apologized to student, American Legion
DOS PALOS -- Students at Dos Palos High School protested Thursday -- by wearing patriotic regalia to school -- after a sophomore student was forced to remove a T-shirt depicting the American flag.
Officials at the Merced County school confirmed Thursday that Jake Shelly was forced to take off a red, white and blue tie-dyed American flag T-shirt on Tuesday. The shirt said nothing offensive, just: "United States of America, Washington, D.C."
The school's assistant principal issued Shelly a bright yellow T-shirt that read "DCV: Dress Code Violator" to wear for the rest of the day. He was given his shirt back after classes ended.
"It was really embarrassing and humiliating to have to wear that all day -- and just for supporting your country," his sister Kaycee Shelly said.
Kaycee Shelly told members of the media at lunchtime that her brother was overwhelmed and did not want to do any more interviews.
Earlier in the day, he was speaking with a local news station when an unidentified teacher walked up to him, ripped off the microphone clipped to his shirt and told him he was not allowed to talk to the media.
District officials said they apologized to the student, his family and the local American Legion on Wednesday -- Constitution Day.
"In reviewing the dress code at the time, an administrator felt the shirt was in violation of that section of the dress code," said Superintendent Brian Walker. "She asked him to remove it and he did."
The assistant principal initially thought Shelly's T-shirt violated a clause of the school dress code that does not allow "shirts/blouses that promote specific races, cultures, or ethnicities."
School officials said they will now interpret that clause of the dress code -- which was written at the beginning of this school year -- differently.
Defiance when asked to remove an article of clothing is an automatic 3- to 5-day suspension, according to the dress code.
"Certainly we are taking responsibility for it and it will not happen again," Walker said. "A shirt that has an American flag, a shirt that has a Chinese flag or a Mexican flag, is certainly not a violation of that part of the dress code."
Jake Shelly was wearing the tie-dyed T-shirt as part of a hippie dress-up day during homecoming week.
Students on campus started a campaign to wear as much red, white or blue clothing and carry as many flags as possible Thursday in protest of Tuesday's decision, despite the apology. Jake Shelly wore the same shirt he wore Tuesday and was not disciplined.
"I am glad so many people are supporting this and wearing red, white and blue," his sister said. She believes the swift change in rules was because of the overwhelming student action.
A.J. Galindo is one student who wore a patriotic shirt to school.
Galindo's shirt honored Marine Cpl. Joshua Pickard, a family member who died in Iraq in 2006. Pickard's two brothers remain active in the Marines.
"I think it is horrible that you can't wear an American flag to school without something like this happening," he said, referring to the flurry of activities during the school's lunch hour. "We have people fighting for our country and dying every day, but we can't wear an American flag at a public school?"
A.J. said he was proud of the patriotism displayed by his classmates.
His mother, Julie, said she was upset when she first heard the news Tuesday but feels better about the situation now.
"Initially, I was really concerned about what I heard, but after asking a few questions I realized the whole controversy is just the result of one person's misinterpretation of the rule," she said.
Julie Galindo said everyone makes mistakes and accepted the apologies by the school's administration.
She added that Dos Palos is a patriotic town and erected a veteran's memorial just last year. Several members of the education community served on a committee to erect the memorial that stands on the grounds of Marks Elementary School.
"I wouldn't want anyone to think of Dos Palos as an unpatriotic place," Julie Galindo said. "I feel very proud of my town and very proud of my country and very proud to wear the American flag."
Obamic inyourfaceism
Great bunch of kids I say... there is hope for America.
PC run wild...
Hmmm...wonder who that teacher is voting for? NOT.
Missing the part where a teacher is under arrest for battery upon a child under the color of authority... Seems like there's a lot of work to do at that school.
Did anyone else notice how QUICKLY the far-left school official equated the American flag with the Chinese and Mexican flags.
He obviouly STILL doesn’t “get it”.
so America is a culture now? Or is Mavs Howard (and Obama supporter) right and now only white people are to celebrate US and the national anthem.
btw, why is the Mavericks organization such a cesspool for anti-Americanism. First, Steve Nash and his peace, love and happiness a few years ago. Then owner Cuban funded anti-American movies. Now, Howard says black people do not sing the anthem. I was a fan a few years ago, but now...go Spurs!
They conveniently do not mention the name of the official who did it. Any guesses as to why?
Now, let’s see the follow up. Fire the teacher and the inept principal. I don’t give a s**t about their union of uneducated educators or whatever. Get rid of these loosers. NOW! And while we’re at it, we might want to start thinking of hiring teachers with real degrees...math, science, etc. Education, political science, etc. do NOT constitute intellectual degrees.
Yes. If an unidentified teacher “ripped” a microphone off my son’s shirt then he might end up having to be IDENTIFIED (by his dental records).
btt
Gee! At least it wasn't the scarlet letter “A”!
Marxism rules in our government schools!
Marxism is our nation's *most* serious threat. Government schools are their most important weapon. If the Marxists and Useful Idiots who rule our nation's government schools and universities succeed in indoctrinating our youth, we will lose freedom in our voting booths.
Another day, another reason to homeschool your children.
Do they even say the Pledge of Allegiance in schools anymore?
Somebody needs fired and then given a one way ticket to Iran!
Idiocracy in real life...............
The administrators are only sorry because significant adverse publicity might unite the community and cost them their jobs or promotions in the future.
I've always believed that the Constitution is pretty exact in how it should be read; unless the teacher is trying to pass a law in congress restricting free speech, I don't believe that it applies to the teacher.
However, the California State constitution is quite clear that the freedom of speech is an inherent right, which would apply in this situation.
Fascists always prefer to operate without exposure.
Leftists always prefer to operate without exposure.
Yes, leftists are fascists.
Everyone in authority that was involved in this should have to wear the bright yellow T-Shirts for a week.
I would love to see that video, if there is one. It would make a great ad for how the public schools are out of control.
There are a ton of great kids like this out there. Many see right through the agenda of their teachers.
My daughter has called one of her teachers to account more than once. And it was done in a respectful way that the teacher complimented her for.
The teachers in this school are a-holes...thank goodness the kids aren't.
I still think we should write a letter to this school, in a positive way. Stating what an honor it must be to have students who stand for America and show their patriotism.
They must be proud of their students who stand up for what is right and honoring America....
We need an address
Surprised that the principal give the kid a hammer & sickle shirt to wear..
Not after those ‘teachers’ get done with them. Add college and forgetaboutit full blown anti-american communist.
Seriously if there is any doubt to how screwed up the people teaching our children are this should end that.
The teachers and principals celebrate drug using, American flag burning, war protesting HIPPIES!!!!
But....I'll bet the farm these communists running this government indoctrination camp would NEVER have an American patriotism week!!
These guys make me sick! And,....Our government schools across the nation are stuffed to the brim with Marxists. How else can we explain that the polls show that nearly half the nation are ready to vote for an Obama?
Yet...There are government school defenders on this site who will **insist** that this is not happening in their child's blue ribbon government indoctrination camp.
( Yes, I am shouting! I am exasperated that parents send their kids to these cesspools of communism and anti-Americanism.)
That section jumped out at me as well.
Sadly, as a teacher on the Northeast, none of this surprises me.
I can’t believe my alma mater is in the news for something besides football. Dos Palos was a great town to grow up in. A little like Mayberry!! Both my dad and grandpa are on the veterans memorial wall too.
Judging from the comments by the kids it sounds like a great place to live.
The solution is simple — pull all federal funding from these AMERICAN government schools.
Wonder how these “teachers” will like it once their gravy train dries up
EVEryone should watch the video. HOmeschoolers’ alert! This is why you can most likely do a better job teaching your kids than they can.
I’d have been expelled for beating the crap out of the teacher for a) putting his/her hands on me and b) telling me that my 1st amendment rights were nullified on school grounds.
Wow is it just me, or does the Principal look just like Nancy Pelosi?
How do government schools resemble prisons? Let me add this one to a long, long list.
Oops, it's a dragon. Oh, well.
Our education system needs to be stomped on. It has been overtaking our children for years. Shame on them and the system.
Politically correct should be redefined as taking away your freedoms....
In their self-induced crisis of maintaining a hip, cutting edge identity (they have been told by the Media that "if California does it, the rest of America will eventually follow..."), they inevitably end up flapping around pointlessly like a German or a French exchange student trying to seem cool but failing miserably. They wind up looking like the image-obsessed freaks that they are, rebels without a clue.
I (from Massachusetts originally) lived out there for a while and let me tell you, it was ugly... for them. I thought Massachusetts was the World Capital of liberal vacuousness until I moved to CA. I was working in internal r&d at a Silicon Valley tech shop, and I had been introduced to the rest of the company gathered family-style around the company lunch table at noon on my first day.
The company's president introduced me to the sea of tubular, crucial and epic smiling faces (to use some way swag Californisms... see what I mean about pointless "hip"?) This was the early '80s; Michael Jackson's hair had recently been torched shooting a Pepsi comercial, and Richard Pryor had just accidentally immolated himself smoking some "freebase" (what it was called before ethnic linguistic laziness shortened it to the far more glotally convenient, street-cred laden "crack").
I smiled back at the sea of "Stepford" faces, and broke the ice by asking brightly, "So, to what do you attribute the increased flamability of negroes these days?" No lie. The stunned, PC horror etched on those vapid mugs will live in my memory forever. Perhaps my finest hour...
There are no heroes, only ordinary people, thrust into extraordinary situations, who then have the opportunity to rise up above what is expected of them, to exceed the job description and its expectations, and really shine.
I must admit, I did shine that day...
;-/
I am so glad you asked. My high school student said they recited the Pledge everyday last year. This year, on 9/11, they didn't take a moment of silence and they didn't say the Pledge. I asked the principal (who is a dem running for office) about the Pledge. He said the state guidelines (KS) suggests they say it on special events and intervals throughout the year...however they took it one further and will say it every Monday, but he has to remind the staff to do so. I guess 9/11 didn't qualify for a special event.
My brother, a retired engineer, worked as a math teacher in an inner city school. His class was the **only** classroom in the school with an American flag. He bought and paid for the flag himself. There were **no** other American flags in the entire school.
Seriously!
He retired from that teaching job 4 years ago.
Yes because although American taxpayer dollars PAY for this school, we aren't supposed to appreciate the United States of AmeriKKKa.
Lousy antiAmerican indoctrinator.
Aparently all cultures are equal, but all of them are more equal than our own.
They had those preprinted, eh?
“Earlier in the day, he was speaking with a local news station when an unidentified teacher walked up to him, ripped off the microphone clipped to his shirt and told him he was not allowed to talk to the media.”
ACLU Missing In Action as usual.
You can write about masturbation in the school poetry paper but they won’t defend a student talking to the REAL press when he has been denied his right to show he is proud of his American flag.
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