Immigration protest concerns cause removal of school flag display
Associated Press
Miami Herald
Jan 30, 2007
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - A display of foreign flags is coming down at Gainesville High School because education officials fear it would attract even more protests from residents who say the display does not make the American flag stand out enough.
"I do anticipate immigration is going to become a messy issue," Superintendent Steven Ballowe said, "Unfortunately, that (display) is such a visible symbol."
The Gainesville school board decided Saturday to take down the flag display, which went up last summer near the school's main parking lot to represent the increasingly diverse community that the school serves.
Students used to love the international display, said board Chairwoman Lee Highsmith.
"The kids say (the display) makes them feel so proud," she said. "I have gotten as many, if not more, e-mails and calls supporting the flags as I've gotten against (them)."
Still, several residents complained that the American flag wasn't standing out enough, so school officials had initially thought they might install a taller pole for the flag.
But board members decided keeping the display as it is was more trouble than it was worth.
"I see this as an adult issue," said board member David Syfan. "It's a needless controversy that takes away from our primary purpose of educating children."
So they're planning a rotating display of flags to be changed every three months or semester, City Board of Education members decided Saturday. The first flags might sport red and white, the colors of Gainesville High, and then perhaps historical American flags, Ballowe suggested.
In the future, some flags from other countries might be flown as an educational tool.
