Posted on 10/03/2014 9:40:41 AM PDT by walford
“The American flag is not a symbol of racism or division,” Becker said. “It is the symbol of freedom and unity. Americans have fought and died to protect that flag, and now we are told to conceal it so we don’t offend Mexican aliens, some of whom entered this country illegally.”
Previously, Live Oak High School, in the San Jose suburb of Morgan Hill, had reports of problems between American citizens and Mexican students. The school sent the American kids wearing the American flag home but allowed the Mexican kids displaying the Mexican flag stay in school.
In 2009, a group of Mexican students marched and waved a Mexican flag around the Live Oak campus in front of all the school.
Some non-Hispanic students then raised the American flag on a tree to show their American patriotism. The Mexican group found this offensive, and then the two groups exchanged profanity-laced threats.
To fix the ‘problem’, the principal issued an order banning students from wearing Stars and Stripes shirts. If a student was caught in violation of the crime of wearing the American flag they would either have to turn them inside-out or go home. The incident garnered national attention as many expressed outrage that students were barred from wearing patriotic clothing.
Parents and a few lawmakers had argued that the actions violated the students’ Constitutional right to free speech.
In the original ruling, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided that past problems at the school gave officials sufficient and justifiable reasons for the order. In its opinion, the court said that schools in general have wide latitude in curbing certain civil rights to ensure campus safety.
On Wednesday, the Federal Appeals Court said they will not reconsider the February ruling upholding the unconstitutional actions of a principal in a Northern California high school who ordered students wearing American flag shirts inside out during a 2010 Cinco de Mayo celebration.
The school’s actions “were tailored to avert violence and focused on student safety,” Judge Margaret McKeown said
The panel said the plaintiffs’ request for a rehearing had failed to gain a majority of votes on the 29-judge court. In a dissenting opinion, three conservative judges said the court should have reconsidered and reversed the February ruling as a violation of free speech.
The ruling “permits the will of the mob to rule our schools,” said Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain, joined by Judges Richard Tallman and Carlos Bea. He said the court was allowing students to silence others by threatening them with violence.
William Becker, a lawyer representing the students called Wednesday’s decision “outrageous” and said he’d likely take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“(We) will not allow the politically correct judiciary to insult our flag,” he wrote in his blog.
In February, a three-judge panel ruled that it was not the court’s place to second-guess the school’s anti-violence efforts.
“The past events “made it reasonable for school officials to proceed as though the threat of a potentially violent disturbance was real,” Judge M. Margaret McKeown wrote for the panel.
But, in his blog, Becker said wearing an American flag to school is a symbol of patriotism, not aggression.
“The American flag is not a symbol of racism or division,” Becker said. “It is the symbol of freedom and unity. Americans have fought and died to protect that flag, and now we are told to conceal it so we don’t offend Mexican aliens, some of whom entered this country illegally.”
If it is not provocative to fly the Mexican flag in America, it is not provocative to fly the American flag in America.
We do not determine free speech based upon violence or threats thereof from people who object. Many Americans died to protect this fundamental right of expression — and this does not depend upon ideology.
If expressions of hatred for the United States are protected, so then are expressions of patriotism.
Parents and grand parents. Time to replace some school board members in the next election. Otherwise, keep doing nothing and expect more of the same. Get active.
Know whether your board member is a conservative or a liberal. Vote and campaign for the conservative candidate. I know it takes time, but the satisfaction of tossing a liberal out has its rewards and satisfactions. Even if the effort fails, you have not wasted your time, you have just pissed off a few liberals.
The alternative is to get your kids out of public schools if you cannot change the board. But I recommend keep trying until you do.
Is this satire?
Like Hell.
Agreed. But until something changes wrt your last paragraph, we need to rely on the courts.
Does it suck? Yes. Is it frought with risks. Yes. But apart from taking up arms and dealing with sort of thing by the business end of a rifle barrel (and we arent anywhere near that point) there aren’t many other options.
On May 6, approximately 200 Hispanic teens, most of whom were Live Oak High School students, walked out of their classes and marched through the downtown and to city hall in protest of what they regarded as disrespect from their American-flag-wearing peers. The crowd carried Mexican flags and sported the red, white and green of Mexico’s national emblem. Two days later, a crowd of students led by several Hispanic students gathered in the amphitheater and held an anti-racism rally advocating acceptance and tolerance among the students.
See there?
4 kids against 200, who walked out of class and off campus.
They didn’t just walk off campus they walked a mile to downtown and protest. They were highly incensed.
How else was that going to end?
Badly.
The Supreme Court has ruled that public school students have the right to engage in non-disruptive free speech, however, that ruling “does not require that school officials wait until disruption occurs before they act,” Ware said.
I’m telling you gunshots would have rang out. There is a huge gang element on that campus.
I absolutely do not disagree with your position but...
It would have absolutely ended with a death.
These people are not rational, reasoned nor informed.(kids I should say)
Crappy deal all around.
Like Hell?
Oh, you mean the type of hell a parent goes through, when their child is taken from them, dying before the parents?
That would have happened.
“I’m telling you gunshots would have rang out. There is a huge gang element on that campus.”
the Ninth Circus. Nuff said.
If your child would be killed for wearing the United States Flag then we have fought wars over less. In fact I guess you would not have your kid display the flag, so your child would be murdered if anyone dares display our flag? And you want your kid raised in a country like that?
The others may be citizens they are NOT Americans. I don’t fault them for flying the Mexican flag, I DO fault them for attacking the American flag.
If we can’t have prayer in school why the Hell do we have to honor Mexico or any other country?
No of course I don’t want your kid injured. But I want America restored.
It was the day that the Mexican army won the battle of Puebla which was caused by the French trying to collect a debt owed by the deadbeat Mexican Government
Dead kids are fine by you?
That is a not our choice now is it?
Common sense and safety get tossed?
The American flag should always be proudly displayed but, on this day it wasn’t going to end well, not at all.
Funny thing is, Mexico doesn’t celebrate this day anywhere I’ve been and many don’t even know the day exists and it’s obscure history.
Surprise!! Kaliforinika wins another prize!! Sick bass turds in most of that state.
I still believe that in many, if not most, cases this could be curtailed by a concerted effort of local parents. For a little while longer, anyway.
I do think that the longer it goes on, the closer it gets to the point were physical (and potentially violent) action becomes necessary. Always better to avoid letting things deteriorate that much.
I don’t want my kid raised in a country like that but, I want my kids to out live me.
I would move my kids to private schooling, if I ever have any and at 51 years old, I seriously doubt I will.
I would give my children their value system, their moral code, their integrity.
No way I’d allow a skrewel district to determine those things for my child.
And yeah, you’re right. The other kids are citizens by law but, they are wholly and completely “NOT AMERICAN”.
I blame their asinine parents for instilling that view.
Why a parent would want their children to identify with losers is beyond me.
Hell, the freaking Irish and Scots have it way better than Mexico.
Let me reiterate:
The American kids were right to proudly display their pride for America and all we stand for.
The fake “chicanos” were wrong for being so incensed, walking off campus and nearly starting a riot.
Their parents are the asses in all this.
Yep and I can predict with certainty who wins this war:
Americans
Dead kids are fine by you?
That is a not our choice now is it?
Common sense and safety get tossed?
And if they were shot unexpectedly, it would be the fault of the perpetrators, not the victims.
If the pro-Mexico/anti-America rally were that dangerous, riot police should have broken it up with tear gas and water cannons. Bullies should never be allowed to essentially claim a part of America and impose their own Law.
No amount of words will ever convince me to accept appeasing bullies. Ever.
“Very creative and deceptive headline on this post (I agree students should be able to display the flag. I don’t like being gamed by people with misleading headlines)”
I have been saying that people on the right need to start employing civil disobedience, and calling it exactly that-I want to hear how the media spins civil disobedience by the right into something wrong, when they’ve praised it for decades when it was used by their favored victim groups.
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