A 12-year-old boy was kicked out of his class in Colorado after being accused of having what school officials called a “racist” Gadsden flag sticker on his back pack. But the boy eventually won a total victory over the anti-American school regime.
Officials at the Vanguard School of Colorado Springs reportedly told the boy’s mother that he was kicked out of class over the banned flag “due to is origins with slavery and slave trade,” and insisted that they are “following district policy,” according to a video posted to social media by Libertas president Connor Boyack.
Meet 12yo Jaiden who was kicked out of class yesterday in Colorado Springs for having a Gadsden flag patch, which the school claims has “origins with slavery.”
The school’s director said via email that the patch was “disruptive to the classroom environment.”
Receipts in the 🧵 pic.twitter.com/qQ8jK1zSpR
— Connor Boyack 📚 (@cboyack) August 29, 2023
Of course, the famed Gadsden Flag has no direct connections to “slavery” whatsoever and instead served as a flag of American unity in 1775 during the Revolutionary War.
The flag is named for its designer, Christopher Gadsden, a South Carolina delegate to the Continental Congress and brigadier general in the Continental Army. It was first unfurled on the flagship of Commodore Esek Hopkins in Dec. of 1775, two days before Hopkins was designated the Commander In Chief of the Continental Navy.
The yellow banner features a coiled rattlesnake with the slogan “Don’t Tread On Me” beneath. The rattlesnake served as a symbol of colonial unity as far back as 1754. Naturally, with its rattle-tipped tail, the rattlesnake is a creature of warning, as well. And Gadsden meant the symbol to warn the British not to encroach on the colonists’ freedoms and rights.
But there was never any connection to slavery when it was introduced.
Despite the historical facts, in an email to the student’s mother, school administrator Jeff Yocum cited the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (USEEOC) which ruled back in 2014 that the flag could be viewed as “racist” if someone feels it is racist whether it is or not, the Washington Post’s Volokh Conspiracy Blog reported in 2016.
They cited @USEEOC, which admitted that the flag “originated in the Revolutionary War in a non-racial context”…
But then said “However, whatever the historic origins and meaning of the symbol, it also has since been sometimes interpreted to convey racially-tinged messages…” pic.twitter.com/w0M74bMgN2
— Connor Boyack 📚 (@cboyack) August 29, 2023
In the 2014 decision, the EEOC found flat out that the flag has no connection to racism or slavery, saying, “After a thorough review of the record, it is clear that the Gadsden Flag originated in the Revolutionary War in a non-racial context.” The commission added that the flag is also often used “to express various non-racial sentiments” in political contexts.
Still, the committee also added that the Gadsden flag is “sometimes” used by bad actors to convey a racist message.
“However, whatever the historic origins and meaning of the symbol, it also has since been sometimes interpreted to convey racially-tinged messages in some contexts,” the EEOC said. It then concluded that the flag “must be investigated” as an example of racism due to the “ambiguity in the current meaning of this symbol.”
Based on this, Yokum argued that the flag is racist because some people feel it is because some “hate groups” have also used the flag.
The director then argued that the flag is associated with “hate groups,” linking to this weak article that cites a “graphic design scholar” 😂 who claimed that “some may now see the Gadsden flag as a symbol of intolerance and hate—or even racism.”
Link: https://t.co/ZD6JZ4AhDK pic.twitter.com/sUOqLEwGf0
— Connor Boyack 📚 (@cboyack) August 29, 2023
Yokum insisted that the Gadsden sticker violated the school district’s policies against disruptive items in class and pointed to the district’s policy on unacceptable clothing, a policy that doesn’t even mention “slavery” as a banned topic.
So what rule was he actually breaking? According to the director, this one (see highlight).
Though it’s unclear what alleged slavery connections have to do with drugs, tobacco, alcohol, or weapons. pic.twitter.com/KohiU4X0jz
— Connor Boyack 📚 (@cboyack) August 29, 2023
Astoundingly, the mother and her son went to the local NBC affiliate to tell their story. But the station turned them away and refused to take the story.
As you can hear his mom say in the video, Jaiden wanted to stand up for his (non-racist!) beliefs. So after he was kicked out of class, he asked his mom to take him to the news station to get the word out.
(He got the idea from a @tuttletwins book 💪🏽)
They declined an interview pic.twitter.com/BEdxWIj7Gp
— Connor Boyack 📚 (@cboyack) August 29, 2023
One has to wonder, though, how this flag can be “racist” if several states allow the symbol on car license plates. To name a few, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the states of Florida, and Alabama all sell the design on car license plates.
Unsurprisingly, X users were shocked by the school’s ignorance of U.S. history and its example of the same sort of tyranny that the colonists were fighting in 1775.
Ironically The Gadsden flag was a Revolutionary warning to the British that the colonists would defend themselves from any royal attempt to coerce them or abuse of their liberties
This is the absolute state of public school . https://t.co/GIVg26nTYM
— The Redheaded libertarian (@TRHLofficial) August 29, 2023
Unreal. @HarrisonSD2, why did you kick a kid out of class for wearing a freedom flag? Why weren’t other kids kicked out for wearing other types of flags? https://t.co/IAMvG7CyEk
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) August 29, 2023
This is the extremely woke state of our schools, unfortunately. These left-wing activists posing as “educators” are shutting down the free speech of conservatives in nearly every school system, even those in red states and red districts. Naturally, students in these biased indoctrination centers can sport all the gay pride and transgender flags they want. But God forbid they want to show pride in America and American history.
Apparently, feelings outweigh historical facts. And if that is the case, then can’t just anything at all be called “racist” if someone “feels” it is? We already know that liberals and Democrats have for years been claiming that the U.S. flag and the “Star Spangled Banner” are racist. Do we dump them because lunatics “feel” they are racist, or because some “hate group” once used them? Where does the line get drawn, and why can’t it get drawn on actual facts, instead of people’s psychotic feelings that are based on nothing?
It wasn’t long before Colorado’s liberal Gov. Jared Polis even spoke out against the school’s idiotic decision. In a post on X, Polis said, “Obviously the Gadsden flag is a proud symbol of the American revolution and a iconic warning to Britain or any government not to violate the liberties of Americans. It appears on popular American medallions and challenge coins through today and Ben Franklin also adopted it to symbolize the union of the 13 colonies. It’s a great teaching moment for a history lesson!”
Obviously the Gadsden flag is a proud symbol of the American revolution and a iconic warning to Britain or any government not to violate the liberties of Americans. It appears on popular American medallions and challenge coins through today and Ben Franklin also adopted it to…
— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) August 29, 2023
So, with the pressure on, the school made a sudden reversal.
The school sent out an email telling the media that the young man was told he would be allowed to display his Gadsden sticker in school.
From Vanguard’s founding we have proudly supported our Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the ordered liberty that all Americans have enjoyed for almost 250 years. The Vanguard School recognizes the historical significance of the Gadsden flag and its place in history. This incident is an occasion for us to reaffirm our deep commitment to a classical education in support of these American principles.
At this time, the Vanguard School Board and the District have informed the student’s family that he may attend school with the Gadsden flag patch visible on his backpack.
Yeah… a backflip like this proves the school read the tea leaves, not that the school has any love for the Constitution or the Bill of Rights… or facts and history, for that matter.
But, still. This is a victory.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, or Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston
Tags: Commentary
Join the conversation!
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.