Students Wearing American Flag Shirts Sent Home

Morgan Hill, CA—Five students were sent home for wearing T-shirts, ironically embellished with the American flag, on Cinco de Mayo. The controversial episode occurred at Live Oak High School in Morgan Hill, California and left parents displeased, according to information provided by MSNBC.

Reports stated Daniel Galli and four of his friends were enjoying their lunch break at Live Oak when they were confronted by the vice principal. The students were allegedly asked to remove their American flag bandanas and turn their American flag T-shirts inside out. Upon refusing to do so, they were subsequently sent to the principle’s office.

Galli alleged, “They said we could wear it on any other day, but today is sensitive to Mexican-Americans because it’s supposed to be their holiday so we were not allowed to wear it today.” According to Galli’s friend Dominic Maciel, “They said if we tried to go back to class with out shirts not taken off, they said it was a defiance and we would get suspended.”

While the school administrators reportedly claimed their patriotic t-shirts and bandanas to be “incendiary,” which could lead to violence on campus, parents considered the incident to be “total nonsense”.

The students who were sent home contended they were merely expressing their American pride. On the other hand, several Mexican-American Live Oak High School students did not appreciate their patriotic attire during Cinco de Mayo.

Student Annicia Nunez reportedly stated, “I think they should apologize cause it is a Mexican Heritage Day… We don’t deserve to be get disrespected like that. We wouldn’t do that on Fourth of July.” Nonetheless, it seems quite unlikely that the students will apologize, with Galli noting, “I’m not going to apologize. I did nothing wrong… I went along with my normal day. I might have worn an American flag, but I’m an American and I’m proud to be an American.”

Morgan Hill Unified School District officials reportedly disagreed with Live Oak High School administrator’s method of dealing with the situation at hand. The students who were sent home were not suspended and expected to return to school Thursday.

Legal News Reporter: Sandra Quinlan- Legal News for California Civil Rights Lawyers