A Colorado school district could soon let teachers fly Black Lives Matter and transgender flags in the classroom, but not make other political statements.
The Durango School District 9-R’s school board is set to consider two resolutions that support displaying the “Progress Pride” and BLM flags in classrooms and double down on DEI and gender ideology. The district banned all political flags in September, when a parent filed a complaint claiming the BLM and transgender “Pride Progress” flags in their child’s classroom are “political symbols” that “indoctrinate students.”
Chief Academic Officer Dylan Connell reviewed the situation with legal counsel and determined that the “Pride Progress” and BLM symbols are “political in nature.” He directed school staff to remove the flags and all other political content “immediately.” On October 1, principals at the high school and middle school told staff that “political flags, posters and items displaying political symbols” must be removed from classrooms in response to a parental complaint.
But just two weeks later, the school board voted unanimously to suspend the ban on the flags amid an outcry from the liberal area’s residents, including a student walkout. Then, at a November school board meeting, board members indicated they thought a special resolution might give them a legal loophole to display the progressive flags without opening the door to all political speech or violating the First Amendment.
“By designating it government speech and adopting [them] as symbols of our school district, it avoids a First Amendment problem,” board member Rick Petersen said.
Essentially, the school district itself would be endorsing the “Progress Pride” and BLM flags rather than simply allowing teachers to display them.
