You beat me to it. Exactly, you can't compare something that is legal to something that is illegal and say, "See this is why we have to ban it."I love the part of the story:
"The district does not allow images of weapons or drugs on clothing. For example, a student would not be permitted to wear a shirt with a picture of a marijuana leaf on it, the superintendent said."
Because a toy solider representing a patriotic theme and a mary jay leaf representing a drug theme are the same.........
Superintendent, you fail
The Associated Press: RI school to alter policy that banned soldier hatRI school to alter policy that banned soldier hat
(AP) – 25 minutes ago
COVENTRY, R.I. — The superintendent of a Rhode Island school district that banned a second-grader's homemade hat because it displayed toy soldiers with tiny guns said Saturday he will work to change the policy to allow such apparel.
Ken Di Pietro said in an e-mail to The Associated Press that the no-weapons policy shouldn't limit student expression, especially when students are depicting "tools of a profession or service," such as the military or police.
"The event exposed how a policy meant to ensure safe environments for students can become restrictive and can present an image counter to the work of our schools to promote patriotism and democracy," Di Pietro said.
David Morales, an 8-year-old student at Tiogue School, made the hat after choosing a patriotic theme for a school project last week. He glued plastic Army figures to a camouflage baseball cap. But school officials banned the hat, saying the guns carried by the Army figures violated school policy.
The decision prompted criticism of the school and support for Morales. On Friday, the boy received a medal from Lt. Gen. Reginald Centracchio, the retired head of the Rhode Island National Guard. Centracchio said Morales should be thanked for recognizing veterans and soldiers.
"You did nothing wrong, and you did an outstanding job," Centracchio told the boy.
Di Pietro said Centrachio met with school officials and asked them to change the policy, and has agreed to work with the school committee on a revision. Di Pietro said the incident obscured the district's strong support for the military.
He noted that Coventry schools sponsor one of only two Air Force Junior ROTC programs in the state.
"Coventry Public Schools has a long history of support for the military and for instilling patriotism in students," he said.
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
This is just ridiculous. These are the people teaching our kids. They can't even make simple distinctions between what is and isn't appropriate for school attire. Let alone the fact that he is 8 years old. I didn't know they made army men without guns, wouldn't they be called miniature Barbie's if they didn't have guns? My nephew was told he could not wear a necklace with a cross on it to school because it could be a gang sign. I guess Christians are now classified as a gang with just really nice clubhouses.
Someone needs to pull their head out of their A@@!!!![/quote]
Or shove the rest of them in so that they disappear with a little popping sound.
The Associated Press: RI school to alter policy that banned soldier hat
It shouldn't have happened in the first place, but at least progress was made after the fact.
ZT is not a liberal policy. It is used by school administrators who are too lazy & spineless to actually make a decision.