Kids Sent Home for Wearing USA Stuff on Cinco de Mayo

[Greenday]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/06...gs-cinco-mayo/

Location: Mexican filled California

What happened: It's Cinco de Mayo, Mexico's day of independence. Some white kids wore a bunch of USA clothes. The vice-principal told them to take off their bandannas. The students complied but that wasn't enough. The vice-principal told them to turn their t-shirts inside out because their shirts had the American flag on it and it was disrespectful to the large Mexican population at the school and might start something.

I'm sorry, but I'm calling bullshit. This is clearly a violation of their constitutional rights. They wore American flag shirts, in America, on a day that's a Mexican holiday and is not recognized as a federal holiday by the US government. If someone was to attack these kids, it'd be because they have a massive inferiority complex. But the kids got sent home because of it.

Oh, by the way, the vice-principal's name is Miguel Rodriguez. Any guesses on what ancestry he has?

[Hobbs]

Faux News? Any legitimate news links?

[KitterCat]

http://www.aolnews.com/article/calif...-mayo/19467684

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local...-92945969.html

http://news.yahoo.com/video/local-15749667/19585803


Just Google it Hobbs. Just because its Fox News doesn’t mean its instantly discredited, after all a lot of other News stations put up plenty of opinion pieces as well calling them news reports.

As for the kids having to leave school because of it being Mexican Heritage Day or whatever PC term the school has decided to call it, my opinion stands that its great for people to want to celebrate their heritage, but they are now in another country. Learn to integrate. If you don’t want to integrate, move back to your former country.

[Boozy]

Schools have the right to ban offensive clothing.

I can't say for sure, but I suspect that these boys didn't wake up that morning and grab some random shirt that just happened to have an American flag on it. I believe they purposefully chose those shirts to make a political statement (This is America! How dare you celebrate a culture that's not American!).

They wanted to make the students of Hispanic ancestry feel uncomfortable. They were douchebags, and got called on it. I'm not weeping for these guys.

[daleduke17]

So, if school were on July 4, would the Mexican kids get sent home for wearing the Mexico flag?

This could happen on Veterans Day or Memorial Day as well. This is the United States of America. The Stars and Stripes should NOT be banned anywhere.

[Greenday]

They wanted to make the students of Hispanic ancestry feel uncomfortable. They were douchebags, and got called on it. I'm not weeping for these guys.

Or maybe they knew the Hispanic kids were all going to be wearing Mexican stuff so they want to just show their pride in America since America is their country.

So, if school were on July 4, would the Mexican kids get sent home for wearing the Mexico flag?

LOL No. Not a chance. Especially not with who is their vice principal.

[Dreamstalker]

This is the United States of America. The Stars and Stripes should NOT be banned anywhere.

We're not talking about a flag banning. The students were being jerks and called on it.

People don't have to celebrate other nations' holidays here, just don't go out of your way to be offensive about it.

[daleduke17]

We're not talking about a flag banning. The students were being jerks and called on it.

People don't have to celebrate other nations' holidays here, just don't go out of your way to be offensive about it.

They banned the American Flag that day. For a completely stupid reason. The kids weren't being jerks. They were being Patriotic.

Just another way that the USA is trying to be way too PC.

[AdminAssistant]

They wanted to make the students of Hispanic ancestry feel uncomfortable. They were douchebags, and got called on it. I'm not weeping for these guys.

Me either. And who wants to bet it was one of the Old Navy 4th of July shirts? (Way to celebrate American pride by wearing something made in Taiwan.) Americans are way too fucking proud as it is. I paraphrase George Carlin - I'm not 'proud' to be an American, because I don't believe one can be 'proud' of a genetic accident. I am glad to be an American. I am happy to live in America, with all of its quirks and faults. But nationalism and overt (and insincere) patriotism are real issues with this country. We can't participate in the global community with the attitudes of "America is BETTER THAN YOU!" or "God loves us best!" which is how I translate "God Bless America".

And way to go on mocking the Vice-Principal for his name. You don't know where he's from, and quite frankly, the fact that you would judge his actions based on that alone is sickening.

[crashhelmet]

First off, a clarification here. Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexico's Independence Day. That day is September 16th. It's not even a Mexican holiday. It's a Mexican-American holiday. A day created to celebrate "Chicano Pride" among the Mexican-Americans in our country. If anything, it's St. Patrick's Day for people with Mexican bloodlines.

When I first read about this, I thought it was all bullshit. I thought the school and the M-A students were overreacting. Then I thought about where this took place.

Morgan Hill, CA is a small farmer town outside of San Jose. The place is famous for its mushrooms and their Mushroom Festival. This town is basically three different groups of people.

1. Hispanic familes that work the farms in Morgan Hill, Gilroy (Mmm..... garlic ), and the other surrounding towns.
2. The rich, or formerly rich, families of Silicon Valley that wanted to buy property and build big houses.
3. Redneck, wanna-be cowboys/girls, 'proudly" displaying their American patriotism every chance they get. A majority even doing so with Confederate flags.

I don't like to stereotype, but the lack of information in this article make me wonder just how much of this was done out of spite. It's one thing to display your patriotism. It's another to go overboard with it.

It wasn't one single student decked out in patriotic paraphernalia. It was multiple students. This is something that was planned in advance. For that, I'm agreeing with the Vice-Principal. These students were trying to start trouble and he stopped it from happening.

CH

[Kimmik]

Here is a quote from MSNBC

But to many Mexican-American students at Live Oak, this was a big deal. They say they were offended by the five boys and others for wearing American colors on a Mexican holiday.

*italics mine*

Now yes it was asshat behavior to try to snub other students... But this is not Mexico.. hence they should not be offended that the students wore the American colors... The comment that I quoted sickens me.. it is as if we should kowtow to every nationality but our own.

This is only really celebrated here and in the city of Pueblo where it took place.

[Hobbs]

First off, a clarification here. Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexico's Independence Day. That day is September 16th. It's not even a Mexican holiday. It's a Mexican-American holiday. A day created to celebrate "Chicano Pride" among the Mexican-Americans in our country. If anything, it's St. Patrick's Day for people with Mexican bloodlines.

CH

Uh, how bout, NO?

Cinco de Mayo commemorates the victory of the Mexican Army over invading French forces of Maximilian I in the Battle of Puebla, 5 May 1862.

[Arcade Man D]

First off, a clarification here. Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexico's Independence Day. That day is September 16th. It's not even a Mexican holiday. It's a Mexican-American holiday. A day created to celebrate "Chicano Pride" among the Mexican-Americans in our country. If anything, it's St. Patrick's Day for people with Mexican bloodlines.

Clarification on your clarification, Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín.

In Mexico, it's mostly celebrated in the region around Puebla.

[jackfaire]

I would put it under freedom of speech honestly even if it was a protest it was a peaceful one and I for one applaud it. I don't agree with their stance but I agree with the way it was executed.

It is the right of everyone in this country to disagree and we seem to forget that.

IE if someone said they do not support the soldiers even the people against the war would join the lynch mob to go after the person. (Just using the example of something people are fanatical about)


EDIT:

I don't celebrate 4th of July because I am an American Citizen if I emigrated and became a citizen somewhere else I would still celebrate it. I celebrate it because my direct ancestors fought in the Revolution. They fought for USA and what they believed in living lives that come down to me.

For me I think that is what any of the holidays we celebrate should be about the personal meaning to us.

[Hobbs]

I don't celebrate 4th of July because I am an American Citizen if I emigrated and became the citizen somewhere else. I celebrate it because my direct ancestors fought in the Revolution. They fought for USA and what they believed in living lives that come down to me.

What?

So...you're a citizen...or you're not...or you emigrated to another country...?