In yet another show of political correctness run amok, Jackson Hole High School in Jackson, Wyoming, canceled its annual “America Pride Day” and replaced it with “College Day.” Fortunately, the students and families of Jackson Hole protested the American way, by appearing at the event dressed in the same patriotic garments they would typically wear at the annual “America Pride Day” event.
To commemorate Jackson Hole High School’s homecoming week, each day of the week is assigned a theme wherein students dress accordingly and take part in a celebration having to do with the theme. Monday was “Lumberjack Day,” when students were expected to wear flannel. Thursday was toga day, and Friday was school spirit day, when students would come to school donned in their school’s colors.
For years, one day in homecoming week was “America Pride Day,” but according to The Blaze, Activities Director Mike Hansen elected to cancel it this year to ensure no students were offended by the display of American pride. “Many different students could have felt singled out…. Maybe they moved here last week. Maybe they moved here last month,” Hansen told the Jackson Hole News & Guide. “We’re trying to balance many different things here. We’re trying to be inclusive and safe, make everyone feel welcome.”
Jackson Hole High Principal Scott Crisp also cited concerns that some students may feel excluded, based on the results of a student survey taken at the school.
Crisp told the News & Guide,
Three times as many students indicated that they were not in support of selecting the title “America Day.” I’m charged with looking at a school with 660 kids, and I have to ensure that all those kids feel part of a student body. Regardless of the name of the day, we want to ensure that activities of the week … bring our students together holistically as a student body.
While Crisp was not specific regarding which students would be offended by a show of American patriotism, The Daily Caller noted the school’s “substantial population of Latino students” as evidenced by the school’s website, which allows viewers the opportunity to translate text into Spanish only.
And despite Crisp’s assertion regarding the survey, the News & Guide reports that “America Pride Day” had been voted as the third most popular theme for homecoming week.
Furthermore, some students argued that replacing “America Day” with “College Day” was potentially more marginalizing. “What if you can’t afford college?” 17-year-old senior Harry Burt asked. “There’s a lot of kids here that can’t afford college. College is not an option for them. It’s more discriminatory.”
In fact, anyone could likely take issue with any proposed day of homecoming week. Friday’s Spirit Day asks students to wear the school colors, for example, but what about those who may have transferred from another school, to which they continue to feel an allegiance? If it is acceptable to ask students to show allegiance to the school in which they learn, why is it not acceptable to ask students to show allegiance to the country in which they live?
Despite the school’s decision to cancel America Pride Day, however, junior and senior students elected to show their opposition by dressing in American flag capes, headbands, shorts, and a variety of other apparel that bore the American flag.
The Daily Caller notes that one student even drove around the parking lot at the end of the school day in a truck that featured a bunch of American flags.
One parent took to Facebook to praise his children for their response to the ban on “America Pride Day,” reports The Blaze.
Along with several photos of his children dressed patriotically, parent Ted Dawson posted,
It’s homecoming week and our school administration thought it was too “offensive” to have an America Pride Day! So this is my kids answer to that! Where have we gone so wrong! I don’t care what race or religion you are, you live here, benefit from the schools, enjoy tax benefits or whatever — your an American or at least you better be!
Jackson Hole High School is, of course, not the first to ask students to hide their American patriotism out of respect to students who do not share in that patriotism.
On May 5, 2010, officials at Live Oak High School in California banned American flags on campus because of the numerous altercations that had been taking place between white and Mexican students. Last year, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the school’s decision, and stated that the school did not violate the Constitution because the school was merely trying to prevent potential violence. But UCLA law professor and Washington Post law blogger Eugene Volokh observed that the Ninth Circuit Court’s decision virtually permitted violent people to bully the government and the school into enacting its demands.
