American Flag Raises A Red Flag For CA School Officials

At Live Oak High School in Morgan Hill, CA, a controversy erupted on Cinco de Mayo when five male students showed up to school that day wearing clothing adorned with the American flag. Officials at the school (which has a large Mexican-American student population) deemed the garments "incendiary" and "disrespectful". The officials feared that displaying the flag would incite fights between Mexican-American students and their five peers. While the quintet were at brunch break (brunch break?!), the vice principal asked two of the boys to remove the American flag bandannas they were wearing on their heads and for the others to turn their American flag T-shirts inside out. When they refused, the boys were ordered to go to the principal's office (do not pass "Go", do not collect $200!) The students were told that if they returned to class with their American flag-adorned clothing, they would be suspended. To avoid suspension, the students went home for the day.

Below is the story as reported by an NBC affiliate in the Bay area:



The following day, Morgan Hill Unified School District Superintendent Wesley Smith said, "While campus safety is our primary concern and administrators made decisions yesterday in an attempt to ensure campus safety, students should not, and will not, be disciplined for wearing patriotic clothing." For more on the story, click here.

Although I think the five students wearing the American flag on Cinco de Mayo was their way of saying "How ya like me now?" to the Mexican-American students, so what! Forcing them to change or else get suspended was the wrong move to make. It looks to me like the school officials hid behind the "safety of the students" shield to cover their overly PC asses. It's not like the quintet wore clothing emblazoned with swastikas or that said "white power", it was the American flag!

Side note: When I checked out the Wikipedia page for Morgan Hill this afternoon, I found it interesting that the "Politics" section ended with the following: "Morgan Hill is known for its excessive love for America and the American flag." I'd love to know if this sentence was there prior to the Live Oak High School controversy.

Mattel Introduces the "So In Style" Line of Black Barbies

'Barbie So In Style' designer Stacey McBride-Irby. Photo courtesty of AP

In an effort to inspire young black girls and promote their self-images, Mattel launched its "So In Style" line of black Barbies last month. The dolls come in varying skin tones, have fuller lips, a wider nose and more pronounced cheek bones and two of them (Trichelle and Kianna) have curlier hair. This is a vast improvement over Mattel's previous attempts at creating a black Barbie (Francie and Christie were basically white Barbies painted brown). The designer of the dolls, Stacey McBride-Irby, said her goal was to address the needs of the African-American community.

While many black women have praised Mattel for the "So In Style" line, the dolls aren't without their detractors. There are some who have expressed concern over the fact that none of the dolls have shorter, natural hair. The thin frames of the dolls have also raised eyebrows (the unrealistic body image issue has been an ongoing criticism of Barbie, regardless of skin color).

Although the criticisms leveled at the "So In Style" line are valid, Ms. McBride-Irby did get many things right. In addition to the varying skin tones and facial characteristics, the line also stresses the importance of education/career aspirations and promotes mentoring among females.

The dolls are experiencing success already and there are plans to expand the line. Hopefully, the concerns raised will be addressed and we'll see "So In Style" dolls that look like this:

and this:

For more on the "So In Style Line", please click here to read the story by Megan K. Scott.

If you'd like to hear Barbie designer Stacey McBride-Irby discuss the "So In Style" line, you can do so by watching the following videos:

So In Style 1

So In Style 2

An Enduring Symbol Of Oppression

I'd like to piggyback on Malcolm's recent post about the Confederate flag and in a way, hopefully, that doesn't steal any of his thunder (smile).

The first time I was moved to write about this subject was way back in 1989. My essay appeared as a guest column in The Memphis Commercial Appeal and was penned in response to a previous guest column by an individual, who, among other things, described the Confederate battle flag as a "symbol of a proud and honorable people."

While I acknowledged the writer's right to interpret the Confederate flag in a positive light, I shared my own reasons for not being able to do so. The following is a somewhat revised excerpt from my original essay, which also holds the honor of being my first published newspaper piece.

Flag Remains A Symbol of Oppression

by Lori D. Johnson

It is difficult to understand how people can disscuss the Civil War in terms of brave soldiers and battles fought without mentioning that not all of the ideals fought for were admirable. How does one embrace the Confederate flag without embracing the evil beliefs which prompted its creation?

As a Southerner, the Confederate flag is also a part of my heritage. But unlike Mr.____ , I detest it, just as conscientious individuals in Germany, South Africa and indeed all over the world, detest the symbols of Nazism and apartheid as symbols of oppression. For me, the flag does not represent hospitality or regional pride. Instead, it represents the Confederacy's efforts to preserve a caste system, a way of life that was wrong and unjust.

Yes, it is honorable for soldiers to fight and die for the causes they believe. While it is only fair that we acknowledge their sincerity and courageousness, in the same breath we must also condem their convictions when they uphold the degradation of other human beings as proper and righteous.

As an African American, I recoil at Mr. ____'s attempt to equate the battles of the Confederacy with those of the civil rights movement. The former was a struggle to protect the ill-gotten rights of a privileged few. The latter sought to guarantee the inalienable rights of all who choose to live in America and believe in its Constitution.

Let us not forget that the war is over and the South was defeated. The flag served its purpose and is entitled to a place in history. It is not entitled to a place on the flag poles of a country that strives to make real the promises of freedom, justice and equality for all.

As a woman, the flag symbolizes to me the Confederacy's approval of the exploitation and abuse of my gender. It did not wave to defend the honor and dignity of enslaved women and girls subjected to the desires of men who were not their husbands or chosen lovers. It cast no shadows upon the breeding of women like cattle. It did not rise to condem the bastardizing of children destined for the auction block and sold to the highest bidder.

As a human being, my perspective prevents me from ever interpreting the Confederate flag as anything but a symbol of oppression.

It is not my wish to forget the past. There are too many lessons yet to be learned. But what has the South to gain by giving odes to an ancient relic of a lost cause? The challenge of the present is setting forth a new course for the future. Let us create new symbols under which to unite and put away the old ones, which had caused so much pain, for so many, for too long.

Rebelling Against the Flag

While on the way to work recently, I stopped at the gas station around the corner from where I live to fill up my car. Also filling up their tank at a nearby pump was a trucker who worked for a company based here in Michigan. The trucker (a white male approximately in his mid to late 40s) gave me a nod of hello and I returned the favor. Something else I noticed about the trucker is that he was sporting a baseball cap with the Confederate Flag symbol on the front of it.

I realize that many people who display the Confederate Flag do so without any racial or political connotations. In fact, I recently learned that some use the Confederate Flag as a symbol of generalized working-class masculinity, suggesting rowdy rebelliousness, and detached from any intended historical, Southern regional, or racial significance, although almost always in a white context. The trucker that I encountered likely fits into this category. Having said that, because of its racist symbolism (through its use by several hate groups), I get a bad taste in my mouth whenever I see the Confederate Flag. Even though I live in Michigan, I see Confederate Flags (on the license plates and rear windows of motor vehicles) on a semi-regular basis. Because I don't like seeing them, whenever I'm behind a vehicle that has one displayed, I will go around them the first chance I get.

Although I feel it's bad policy for government buildings to display the Confederate Flag, I'm not saying that individuals should be stopped from doing so. However, I think it's important that they understand that the Confederate Flag stirs negative feelings in the hearts of many (including non-blacks). A few years ago, I was watching the "E! True Hollywood Story" about the TV show The Dukes of Hazzard and it discussed the controversy surrounding the displaying of the Confederate Flag on the roof of the Duke's car The General Lee. The creator of the show (Gy Waldron) was interviewed on camera for the "E! True Hollywood Story" episode. Courtesy of You Tube, I just watched the episode again. Waldron stated that painting the flag on the roof of the car was done innocently because it was commonplace in the 1950s and 1960s to see the flag painted on cars throughout the South. He added that because the use of the flag on The General Lee was not done as a political statement, he saw no reason to bow to pressure from anyone and remove it. I can appreciate that painting the flag on the car wasn't a political statement and why Waldron felt no need to remove it, but he lost me when he discussed the reason why it was used in the first place. The show debuted in 1979 and was set in the present, so why use something that was commonplace in the 1950s and 1960s? Although I haven't seen the big screen version of The The Dukes of Hazzard, I read that there was a scene that addressed the displaying of the Confederate Flag on The General Lee.

Rocker Tom Petty took a different view than Waldron regarding the Confederate Flag. Back in 1985, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers released an album titled Southern Accents. In support of the album, the band did a tour they called "Pack Up the Plantation". As the stage backdrop, the band used a giant Confederate Flag. A music video (taken from the tour) for the song Rebels contains the backdrop as well as a scene of Tom draping himself in a Confederate Flag that was handed to him by a fan in the audience. When I first saw this video as a teen, it caused me to question what message Tom was trying to convey. Apparently, someone talked to Tom because I remember him doing an interview on MTV where he asked fans not to bring their Confederate Flags to his shows. He may have also discontinued the use of the Confederate Flag as the backdrop at his shows, but I'm not sure.

What are your thoughts on the Confederate Flag?