A 13-year-old California boy who was told by school officials to remove a U.S. flag from his bike will once again be able to fly the Stars and Stripes as he rides on campus.
Just before Veterans Day, officials at Denair Middle School told Cody Alicea to remove the American flag over concerns of his safety. The school cited complaints from other students. But on Friday, Superintendent Edward Parraz backtracked on that decision -- apparently in response to public outcry.
The superintendent told a TV station that in its initial decision, the school was trying to avoid racial tensions stemming from an issue that arose when Hispanic students brought Mexican flags to school earlier this year (May 5) during an observance of "Cinco de Mayo." Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver calls the school's reasoning "absurd."
"This is the United States of America -- and this young boy has a right to be able to put a flag on the back of his bicycle," says Stave. "He wants to honor veterans, including his grandfather, who served in our country's military -- [and] he ought to be able to do that. The mere fear that someone might bring some kind of other flag as a hypothetical possibility is not a basis to censor, of all things, the United States Flag."
Staver did send a letter to Superintendent Parraz, but tells OneNewsNow that it appears there is no need for further action.
"Because it looks like now the school is going to be back-peddling a little bit," he explains. "We're just going to make sure that the school continues back-peddling and [that] this never happens again.
"It shouldn't have ever happened to Cody in the first place -- and it shouldn't happen to anybody in the future."
You know it must be nice to have a State overrun by a foreign Countries people! To shape their future and cause hate and divide between it's own people! Yea California must love it! Give up their American Life for the Mexican way of life! They want to be Mexico, let them! We will just end up invading it and taking it back! Those people make me sick! No Americans there just wanna be Mexicans! That is my rant for the day!