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Filed under: Teens & tweens, In the news, EducationDepending upon your point of view, the Confederate flag is either a proud emblem of Southern heritage or an offensive display of racism. For 18-year-old Tommy DeFoe, it's the former. He says his great-great uncle served in the Confederate army and "died for the South" in the Civil War. For that reason, DeFoe feels he should have the right to display the Southern Cross on his clothes and belt buckle, even at Tennessee's Anderson High School, where it is in violation of the dress code.Actually, the code doesn't specifically ban the Confederate flag, but up until 2001 it did. Today the policy is more general, but school board chairman John Burrell says it is understood that the Confederate flag symbol is not allowed. Which is why DeFoe was suspended more than 40 times for sporting the flag on his clothing while at school.DeFoe feels his right to free speech was violated and is suing the Anderson County School Board. "I am fighting for my heritage and my rights as a Southerner and an American," said DeFoe.Anderson County officials say the flag ban is in place to avoid stirring up racial tensions. Although Anderson High currently has only one black student, two years ago the arrival of two black students was met with racist graffiti and a Confederate flag raising. And at nearby Clinton High School, which happens to have been the first public school desegregated by court order in 1956, the student body is more racially mixed. "If he had worn at Clinton High what he wore at Anderson High it would have been a riot, somebody would have clobbered him," said Burrell.DeFoe's lawsuit isn't the first to challenge the Confederate flag ban in school dress codes, but is one of the few to make it to trial. Most others have been settled with a payment to the plaintiff or thrown out by a judge. The jury in this case is on its third day of deliberations and has yet to reach a verdict. Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Posted on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 11:00:00 EST at http://www.parentdish.com/2008/08/15/con...-in-court/
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