Don't wear the American Flag on your shirt in California schools, you might offend the Mexicans.

[Something Amyss]

Yes, God forbid someone wear a T-shirt depicting the flag of the country they're in. Frankly if someone get offended by seeing the flag of the country they currently live in, that sounds like their own fucking problem.

Anyway, I kind of agree with MovieBob that the phrase "politically correct" doesn't really mean anything anymore because it gets thrown around in some circles like a comma, but this is an exception to that rule. In fact, this is a prime example of how political correctness can still be a legitimately bad thing.

There was trouble last year. How is that "politically correct?" sounds more like "common sense" and "heading off potential violence.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Nothing was banned, a group of students were asked to turn their shirts inside out, for one day. Nothing in the article suggests that students were banned from anything. Perhaps someday in the future when students can demonstrate that they can display the American flag durring Cinco de Mayo WITHOUT ALSO antagonizing Mexican students, this one day out of the year will no longer carry a restriction...

Well whatever, I still think it was unnecessary. Don't punish everybody for the crimes of a few.

 

[userwhoquitthesite]

Even though this happened on May 5th of this year, CNN just ran the article now, likely due to the legal proceedings taking so long.

A group of white students wearing T-Shirts bearing the American flag were asked to turn their shirts inside out due to the possibility it could have been inflammatory to the Mexican students at the school on Cinco de Mayo.

The students and their families sued the school on the grounds that their freedom of speech had been infringed and the Judge in Northern California sided with the school.


How do you feel about this?

Im my personal opinion, I believe that when wearing your nation's flag on your own soil becomes "inflammatory" and unacceptable, the problem is not with the students or the t-shirts or the flag, it is with the Judge and the schools. The thought that someone can immigrate from another country and have a holiday from that country (which in the case of Cinco de Mayo, the Mexicans in Mexico don't even really celebrate like we do in the U.S.) be grounds for their host country having to hide their flag, we have a problem on many levels. If I were to go to Great Britain and demand that the British flag be covered because it might offend me on the 4th of July, it would cause an uproar.


The article in question can be found here: http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/18/opinion/navarrette-t-shirt-controversy/

This is disgraceful. The administrators need to be fired, or at least punished for their idiocy.

That said, you shouldn't wear the flag on your clothes anyway, dammit.

 

[MrGalactus]

I'm an immigrant living in the USA, and honestly, I don't get offended by seeing the US flag, why would I? It's your flag. I don't understand Americas massive stiffy for it's flag, but it doesn't piss me off to see it.

I think this is a case of overly sensitive, Hyper-Liberal policy taking charge, either that or some small-minded, Mexican Nationalists at the school got offended for some stupid reason and complained.

Either way it's silly and pointless. It reminds me of the time in England when they changed the name of a primary school play from Three Little Piggies to Three Little Puppies so as not to offend Muslims. Even the lions share of the Muslim community said it was stupid, and it encouraged the more militant ones to latch onto it.

Bad idea, this.

 

[meromero]

lol americans

not wearing their flag because it might ofend someone? that just stupid. Specially considering that every friking american movie, tv series, video game, etc MUST HAVE BY LAW their flag for a few seconds on screen (not necesary by law, but it's always there).

also why is the big need to always sue absolutly everything? they were ASKED, not forced or punished. ¬¬

Unfortunately "asked" in American schools is usually more the sort of "asked" that you are expected to comply with before it becomes an order. If they don't like what you're doing, they'll ask, when you refuse, they'll tell you, and if you refuse again, they'll punish you.

It's so stupid...

kind of funny when you think that americans are talking about being the free world and how much freedom they, all the time. But i live in Argentina and in my school we used to have a lot more freedom

 

[Darren716]

I cant believe that it has come to a point where some one cant wear the flag of their own country because it might offend someone who came hear (probably illegaly) this amd the Dream Act which i dont waant to talk about because of how retarded it is, makes me not want to step foot in california

 

[SilentCom]

I blame political correctness and general opposition towards patriotism. Keep in mind, patriotism is not about thinking of your country as being better than others; patriotism is about loving and supporting your country.

 

[jane.doe]

I cant believe that it has come to a point where some one cant wear the flag of their own country because it might offend someone who came hear (probably illegaly) this amd the Dream Act which i dont waant to talk about because of how retarded it is, makes me not want to step foot in california

Stay classy, brah.

 

[SilentCom]

I blame political correctness and general opposition towards patriotism. Keep in mind, patriotism is not about thinking of your country as being better than others; patriotism is about loving and supporting your country.

And deciding to all go wearing American flags on a holiday with strong influences from another culture. Oh wait that's not really loving and supporting your country.

If the mexicans love mexico and the holidays celebrated there so much, then why are they living in America? The reason is because they want to live here and be part of this country. If they are offended by the American flag then they shouldn't be in this country.

As a matter of fact, plenty of Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo as well. It's basically a big party to everyone. So it's not like people were against the celebration. Their choice to wear the American flag is their freedom and doing so on that day shows their pride. If anything, it shows that Cinco de Mayo isn't just a Mexican holiday but celebrated by Americans as well. It shows they take pride in being an American who celebrates Cinco de Mayo. Unless of course the people wearing the American flag are flamboyantly protesting Cinco de Mayo, then it's a completely different story.

I view the banning of the American flag as being something over-sensitive and unnecessary. It's because of certain hyper-liberal people being afraid that patriotism will offend immigrants. Immigrants choose to move to other countries because they want to be part of that country.

 

[blackrad124]

read the article before you freak out. the previous year, white students hung an American flag during a Cinco de Mayo parade around the school, and began chanting USA, USA. I'm sure the kids were asked to respect Cinco de Mayo and the mexican students by giving ground to respect their holiday - and quell the violence that might ensue.

there are two sides to every story

 

[Thistlehart]

Yeah... no...

These kids were likely just trying to spark trouble. They were using the flag of the USA to antagonize immigrants. That is, if nothing else, a gross insult to the flag and everything we say we stand for.

On the Statue of Liberty it is engraved:
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

Immigrants from Mexico are getting away from a country going to pieces, and by the words engraved onto our most sacred national monument, we invite them and offer them a better life. That doesn't mean that they can't be proud of their heritage and the battles their ancestors fought and won. We Americans have little justification to judge them or taunt them, as it is through our own laxity that their country is being ruined.

/soapbox

 

[lacktheknack]

The article mentions "cultural powder keg". If that's true, then the school was right.

I've been trapped as a middleman in fights before. It's nasty. Two of my friends fight, then come to ME for support. It ends with them both a bit ticked at me, but at least I stopped them from coming to blows.

"For heaven's sake, don't say that to him! Are you LOOKING to have your throat slit in your sleep?" I say to one, as I take a nasty note from the other (that I wasn't supposed to read) and shred it.

Are they allowed to do what they want? Yes. Is it appropriate to do so in many cases? I laugh at a "your Mom" joke on occasion, they can be finally and harmless. Is this a good time to do it? NO.

Wearing a flag on your shirt to piss off other people? (Remember, this was after a giant face off involving flying curses, insults and death threats, they were DEFINITELY doing it to piss off the Mexican kids.) Not a good idea, a HORRIBLE idea in this context. For all we know, knives could have been drawn over this. (Considering that I saw someone get attacked for daring to say that the US DIDN'T plan the Pearl Harbor attacks, yes really, I fully believe it could have happened.)

The world doesn't understand tact anymore, and I think it should be standardized. If you're deliberately trying to piss people off, GTFO.

I really hate it when people fail to tell the difference between patriotism and nationalism.

BINGO.

 

[Agayek]

I don't necessarily find the school's actions objectionable. It's perfectly valid for them to enforce a dress code however they see fit.

The bit I take issue with here is that the rules are being applied selectively, and that's bullshit. I don't know enough about the situation to make a good call one way or the other, but from what information I have, I would say the students should not have had to face disciplinary action for their choice in attire.

 

[Billabong Pobblecock]

Surely they can settle their differences over some tacos and hamburgers!

you should work for the UN

 

[Mimssy]

Well, I'm glad to have been proven right in my guess that this was legal when this story first cropped up.

School children don't have absolute free speech, if the school can prove that the shirts are disruptive (say, for inciting ethnic tensions), then they can be told not to wear them. I think it's silly to conflate what are clearly ethnic tensions with patriotism. They didn't wear American flags because they were proud of their country. They wore them to antagonize Mexican-American students who were celebrating something they didn't happen to be a part of. It's a terrible and offensive use of the flag.

I should also note, that it was once considered wildly inappropriate, and gauche to print an American flag decoration on any item of clothing. I still think of it as kind of tacky, it's a gross form of plastic patriotism.

It's also in the Flag Code, which is strictly voluntary, but I wonder if any of these alleged patriots have ever read it.

(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free. Bunting of blue, white, and red, always arranged with the blue above, the white in the middle, and the red below, should be used for covering a speaker's desk, draping the front of the platform, and for decoration in general

Whenever I get annoyed reading these threads, I stumble upon your response and feel a thousand times between. Thank you for always being a calm rational voice.

 

[SilentCom]

I blame political correctness and general opposition towards patriotism. Keep in mind, patriotism is not about thinking of your country as being better than others; patriotism is about loving and supporting your country.

And deciding to all go wearing American flags on a holiday with strong influences from another culture. Oh wait that's not really loving and supporting your country.

If the mexicans love mexico and the holidays celebrated there so much, then why are they living in America?

If you hate reason so much, why do you pretend to use it?

But for people who care about reason, that argument is stupid because living in America doesn't magically ban multiculturalism, only nationalists who think they're patriots think so.

The reason is because they want to live here and be part of this country.

Good job not thinking beyond "OMG AMERICA." Maybe you can make the little tiny step to "I can live in America without totally abandoning my culture!"

If they are offended by the American flag then they shouldn't be in this country.

If you can't understand basic ideas like "People aren't throwing around American flags because they love this country" maybe you shouldn't be talking? Or basic ideas like "They're not offended by the flag, they're offended by people throwing it around with an idiotic xenophobic bent"?

As a matter of fact, plenty of Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo as well. It's basically a big party to everyone.

You shattered my perceptions! Not.

So it's not like people were against the celebration.

"Some Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo so none of them must have a problem with it!"
Like I said, if you really hate reason so much, why even pretend to use it?

Their choice to wear the American flag is their freedom and doing so on that day shows their pride.

Or it shows that you fail to understand subtle hammer blows. Like people can use the flag to give a message besides "I am proud of my country"

If anything, it shows that Cinco de Mayo isn't just a Mexican holiday but celebrated by Americans as well.

Yes, that's totally why they did it. I'm sure of it. /sarcasm

It shows they take pride in being an American who celebrates Cinco de Mayo. Unless of course the people wearing the American flag are flamboyantly protesting Cinco de Mayo, then it's a completely different story.

Well now let's consider this magical land called context. Where we hear of flag waving the year before in this manner:

The previous year, in 2009, a group of Mexican students marked the holiday by walking around campus holding a Mexican flag. A group of white students responded by hanging a makeshift American flag from a tree and chanting "USA."

Oh and now students suddenly decide to show up wearing American flags on that particular day. Oh well, it would take too much common sense to notice a link, let's pretend there is no potential link there.

I view the banning of the American flag as being something over-sensitive and unnecessary.

And I know whining about how "omg it's the American flag!" is over-sensitive and unnecessary.

It's because of certain hyper-liberal people being afraid that patriotism will offend immigrants.

That's the delusion of xenophobic hyper-conservative nationalists who fancy themselves to be mind readers.

Immigrants choose to move to other countries because they want to be part of that country.

Yes, and that has nothing to do with it.

For someone pretending to be reasonable, you had very little reason to present in your rebuttal. Much of what you had posted was sarcasm and hatred.

I'm going to give a simple answer here:

People who come to America are either just visiting or choose to live here. Seeing that we're talking about a school district it is safe to assume they are living here which means they have a green card or citizenship. This means the American flag is their flag too therefore they should not have any reason to be offended by their flag.

America was started by immigrants and the ideals encompassing freedom and tolerance, therefore the flag represents more than just caucasian people. To think otherwise is to be elitist and ignorant.

The kids whom all wore those shirts may have acted stupid but that doesn't mean the school should go about banning the flag.