An Oklahoma community is expressing outrage after a high school student was banned from flying the American flag on his pickup truck.
The decision sparked a patriotic protest by students and parents outside Edmond North High School, who responded by waving several American flags on campus in support of the student.
Caleb Horst, a senior at the school, said he was confused when the school told him to stop flying the stars and stripes on his truck, particularly since he had already “been flying it for quite some time.”
“I’ve never had a problem with that before, and it’s our First Amendment, so it’s pretty hard for them to infringe on our rights,” Horst said. COCONUT last week.
Caleb Horst, a senior at Edmond North High School in Oklahoma, sparked a local protest after he was banned from flying an American flag on his pickup truck on campus.
Crowds of students, parents and community members gathered at the school to protest the decision.
Since Horst spoke out about her school’s order, she has received an outpouring of support from other students, parents and local lawmakers demanding it be repealed.
Edmond Public Schools said the district prohibits flying any flags on vehicles.
“This is designed to prevent disruptions and distractions during the school day,” the school district told KOCO.
‘It is also done in an effort to provide a safe school environment, as flags flown on vehicles create safety issues in the parking lot and can also cause damage to other vehicles.’
The explanation appeared to do little to calm community backlash, and Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters said he plans to launch an investigation into the school district.
“I think they’re making a lot of excuses,” he said.
‘Here’s the reality: You told the kid he couldn’t bring a flag to campus, that’s a ridiculous position to take and it needs to be fixed.’
Locals said they were outraged by the decision, while one protester said the flag “represents us as one and it’s our freedom, we have people fighting and dying for that flag every day.”
Edmond High School said it will handle any discipline on a case-by-case basis.
Walters vowed to protect students’ rights to fly the flag until the rules are changed.
A group of local lawmakers announced they are requesting that the district superintendent update his policies.
The protests in Edmond even garnered support from Dukes of Hazzard star John Schneider, who posted a video on Facebook saying he was “applauding” the students’ efforts.
“These are the kinds of people we need to not only continue to support, but to shout their names and their patriotism from the rooftops,” Schneider said.
“Caleb, you are doing a great job… keep doing it and I want everyone to continue supporting this wonderful young man.”
Horst said in response to the ban: “It’s our First Amendment, so it’s pretty hard for them to infringe on our rights.”
The school district has stood firm and threatened disciplinary action if Horst refuses to stop flying the flag on his truck.
The situation sparked a small protest in the school parking lot as several parents and students gathered to wave the flag in protest.
Vance Miller, a friend of Horst’s, said outside the school that the ban deeply affected him because of his family’s military background.
“I have a brother in the military, so I was impressed because I thought he was fighting for that flag and we should be able to fly it,” Miller said.
It would be different if we were trying to make a political statement, but there is nothing political about it.
“It represents us, it represents unity, it represents us as one and it is our freedom, we have people who fight and die for that flag every day, so I think we should be allowed to fly it.”
While the school district stood firm, the campus was packed this week with parents, students and community members defying the order not to fly the flag.
Facing possible disciplinary action, Horst said Monday he plans to continue fighting the flag ban and was touched by the outpouring of support from the community.
“It was a really nice feeling to see how many people were supporting us,” he said.
“I know there are a lot of people who don’t support us, but there are probably even more who do, and that was kind of encouraging.”
The school district said it will handle any discipline on a case-by-case basis, and so far students say their protests have not resulted in any action.
“Last week, they talked about disciplinary measures,” said Sutton Cargill, a junior at the school. COCONUT“There’s really nothing new coming out.”
“Unless they want to put half their school in AISP (Alternative Placement in Schools), they couldn’t really punish everyone for having the American flag outside.”