Big controversy in Livingston Parish, LA at this hour, as a high school student is claiming that he was sent home by his principal for wearing an Indianapolis Colts jersey during the schools’ Black-and-Gold Day to honor the Saints. Now the ACLU is involved, saying that Brandon Frost, a senior at Maurepas High School, had his civil liberties violated when he was told his Colts jersey was inappropriate attire. All students were encouraged to wear Saints jerseys to school today. Key quote:
“The principal came and got me out of class,” Frost said. “He started to get angry with me. After that, all I really remember him telling me was if I like Indiana so much, why don’t I move back to Indiana.”
The boy’s father said he called the ACLU rather than the school because he was too angry.
“Louisiana would be proud of him anyway,” Larry Frost told the Associated Press. “He wore Joseph Addai’s jersey.”
The Colts running back is a graduate of Louisiana State University.
The school is now saying that Frost was not sent home, and that the Colts jersey ban was due to the fact that the school has a uniform dress code that was only relaxed for the Black-and-Gold Day. But Frost and his parents didn’t buy that explanation, and both say the boy was sent home. From WBRZ-2 TV:
“Brandon felt singled out,” said Larry Frost. “I didn’t see where it should be a problem. If everybody else is dressing out of uniform, I think he should be able to wear his.”
Frost is from Indianapolis and moved to Maurepas with his father four years ago. He claims to have one of the best ACT scores in his class and has plans to join the National Guard.
Steve Vampran, principal of Maurepas High School, at first had no comment. But now he’s talking, telling AP that he probably shouldn’t have made the comment about moving back to Indiana. He said that Brandon wasn’t ordered to go home, but wasn’t stopped from doing so instead of just changing his shirt at school. He also says that he’s talked with Frost’s father, and that things “have been worked out.”
The American Civil Liberties Union fired off a letter to Vampran as soon as they got wind of the incident, demanding the school restore Frost’s record and erase any mention of disciplinary action taken because he chose to support the Colts.
When, oh when will school administrators learn that if you act all fascist-like in the age of technology, you’re in a world of hurt? Just ask this principal.
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Student punished for wearing Colts jersey [WBRZ]
Maurepas student sent home from school for wearing Indianapolis Colts jersey [New Orleans Times-Picayune]
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- EVA - Feb 6, 2010 at 11:25 AM
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I HAVE TO AGREE 100% WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH EDUCATION IN THE FIRST PLACE?
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- EVA - Feb 6, 2010 at 11:30 AM
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WOW REALLY? ARE YOU REALLY SAYING HE SHOULD SET DOWN AND SHUT UP? DID I MISS SOMETHING OR ARE WE STILL IN AMERICA WERE EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO SAY, DO AND WEAR WHAT EVER THEY CHOOSE? MAYBE THAT IS PART OF THE PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE GOTTEN TOO GOOD AT NOT SPEAKING OUR MIND IF WE FEEL IT IS NOT THE POPULAR POINT OF VIEW.
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- Gerry - Feb 6, 2010 at 11:55 AM
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Marvin’s right on. Tho normally I don’t like spending school time on sports, after Katrina N.O. is being lifted up some by the Saints’ success. Principal is right to avoid inter-student confrontation, tho wrong to say ‘go back to Indiana!’ It was preannounced as Black & Gold day –if the boy wanted otherwise he should have conferred with school officials in advance, perhaps being permitted to skip school. On the other hand, principal should also teach the school to accept diversity and that competitive rivalry does not call for physical or verbal altercations and should not occasion being uncivil toward one another.
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- coltsrock1298 - Feb 6, 2010 at 1:06 PM
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no way the colts rock!!
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- Fanamine - Feb 6, 2010 at 1:25 PM
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You are the epitomy of today’s blame the victim philosophy. The principal was wrong to declare a Black and Gold day without consideration for those who may not support the team. Poor planning leads to these type of incidents. His remark to the young man just shows how inept he is as an administrator. A high school young man should not have to confer on a matter he likely saw as a chance to support his team. It doesn’t matter what his intent was in wearing the Colt jersey. Barring any other colors should have been taken into consideration in announcing the day. What an asinine remark to have him skip school. What that means is if he cannot conform, then stay away. What a nice message to send to the future leaders of this nation. I believe freedom and conformity are antagonistic. I choose the former.
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- Terry - Feb 6, 2010 at 2:09 PM
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Good kid – he’s got guts.
As for brains – how much brainpower does it take to live in a place like New Orleans which is 1) below sea level and is 2)legendary for its corruption – a lethal combination to be sure, as in Federal Funds sent there (innumerable times) for the express purpose of working on the storm barriers being ‘diverted’ for other projects?
BTW – President Bush made personal phone calls to both the Mayor of N.O. and the governor of Louisiana 48 hours before Katrina hit and told them how bad it was and begged them to institute immediate evacuation proceedings. They turned him down.
Remember those pictures of the 200 unused school buses – they could have gotten 12,000 people out of town and that would be without anyone standing up. (And they could have come back and could have done it again and again)
Did the mayor order their use when even HE knew how bad the storm was gonna be? Nope.
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- Jeff - Feb 6, 2010 at 2:54 PM
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Yet another reason why I would never move to Louisiana, even to take the last job on the face of the Earth. And if someone forced me to move there, you can bet I’d homeschool my kids.
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- johnny touchdown - Feb 6, 2010 at 3:28 PM
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Go Colts youve got to win over the Saints now.
Its unreal that people that are watching over our kids are this stupid.
This is a New Orleans black eye for all Saints fans.
Fire the guy.
People can wear what they want in Indiana any color.
I just cant believe this even happened.Just plain stupid people
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- Tracy - Feb 6, 2010 at 4:10 PM
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A lot of people are assuming that the boy would have been attacked during the day. If the boy is harrassed after this event, the Principal is partially to blame for that.
I used to be a principal in Indiana. We had a school uniform too and ‘relaxed’ it for the kids to wear jersey’s when there were big games. However, we also allowed students to wear the jersey’s of opposing teams. Yes, one or two kids made that choice once or twice. Yes, there was some ribbing that happened during the day.
AND, it became a very teachable moment for the teachers and students. Take the time to praise the option of choice. Take the time to teach ‘free speech’. Take the time to honor our COUNTRY by showing our youth how we can compete and have teams without hating each other.
The principal failed miserably when he pulled the kid out of class. He should lose his job.
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- Gringo Bob - Feb 6, 2010 at 5:13 PM
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Good for you Brandon. I graduated from high school in 1958 from South Whitley H.S. in northern Indiana. Indiana didn’t have a Pro football team then, so I was a Bears fan. I strongly support your right to support the team of your choice, even in opposition to your pricipal or the whole student body or even the whole state of Louisana. Nobody has the right to dictate the colors you wear…If some can wear black and gold, you have every right to wear the colors of your choice. I served 6 years in the military to defent the rights of individuals to free speech, including those who opposed me for that time in the military. What I did was for your right to do what you did.
If they don’t like blue and white, maybe they are the ones who should consider moving to another place. I also support the Colts in the game tommorrow, but have a lot of respect for the Saints. It should be a great game.
Gringo Bob
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- JCRNola - Feb 6, 2010 at 8:08 PM
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yes and no. If a dress code was relaxed for Black & Gold day, the only other option would be to adhere to the regular dress code. So, yes, any child who did not wish to wear Saints clothing, but also violated the dress code, would have had to change. But No, b/c the principal would have freaked out over some other shirt. I don’t know if this school has uniforms, but many school dress codes to not allow t-shirt or shirts with any type of logo (teams, bands, food, etc.).
As to the poster who whined about how the kid should not have been forced to wear a Saints shirt, he wasn’t…if he didn’t want to participate in the special dress day, he could have worn something that conformed to the dress codes..same as every other school day.
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- JCRNola - Feb 6, 2010 at 8:18 PM
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I’m not anymore misinformed that anyone else who read the article. The principal said he didn’t tell the kid to leave, but he didn’t stop him either. I seriously, seriously doubt the kids just stood there mutely while the principal yelled, then silently walked out the door, went home, and waited for daddy to call the ACLU. And, yes, the principal should have acted like a professional and an adult, and not like as ass, but there is no way I’m going to believe the kid said nothing. The fact that he wore a colts shirt on saints days is a pretty confrontational act that he had to know would garner negative attention.
As for the B&G day, I’m not getting how so many people do not seem to get the purpose of the event? I guess uniforms are not so common in other areas, but many of the schools in and around New Orleans have uniforms. If the school allows students to wear something special, they have only two choices – the special clothing or the uniforms!!!
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- Mikey - Feb 6, 2010 at 9:54 PM
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Yes Randy, you did read well, BLACK & GOLD…..The Stillers couldn’t be there this year so they asked their NFC counterparts to keep the tradition going of ALWAYS BLACK AND GOLD!
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- amy - Feb 6, 2010 at 11:26 PM
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i think the boy should have at leaste respected the saints in their own state. he should have had been normal instead of hungry for attention. i also think it was wrong for the principal to tell the boy to move back to indiana. but seriously, people find the weirdest things to fight about.
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- Steve - Feb 7, 2010 at 12:20 AM
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Everybody was wrong. In today’s society, there’s always someone who wants attention so badly that he/she is willing to do anything to disrupt and spoil it for the rest of us. This kid wore the uniform to disrupt the event. He was wrong. The parents were wrong for letting him do it. The principal was wrong for brow beating the kid. Now we know why schools have dress codes. I’m guessing this will set a precedent for all schools going forward to not have “color days.” So, you won’t see this anymore in schools across the country. So, I guess everyone will dress in khakis everyday just like they do in China and other communist countries. Way to go kid! Enjoy your stay in Louisiana!
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- Lyssa - Feb 7, 2010 at 2:56 AM
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Several issues are in place here, and in every one of them, the school administration is in the wrong. In none of them can I say that the student is in the wrong. I could speak at length on dozens of issues, but I’ll start with the most glaringly apparent:
The question of whether public school uniform dress code is acceptable or not in the first place is a matter for another discussion. However, once the uniform dress code IS established and accepted, to allow special privilege by relaxing it only for a special subset of students, who themselves did nothing to EARN the privilege, is a very clear case of unlawful discrimination that needs to be blocked. To say that you are exempted from the dress code only if you are willing to support a particular sports team would be ridiculous if not for the fact that it is such a deadly serious violation of rights. If they were to say that white students can wear whatever they like, but black students had to wear the uniform (OR VICE VERSA – EVEN IF THEY HAD ONE DAY FOR EACH) would be completely unacceptable; taking it a step further, if you were exempted from the dress code only if you support a particular political party or candidate would be a clear demonstration of anti-American fascism (no matter HOW ‘patriotic’ the party in question happens to be).
In one way, the implementation of such a policy over an issue as trivial as a sports rivalry is just laughable, there is still no substantive difference between it and the extreme clarity of what is being done in my second hypothetical example. This is why such a ‘trivial’ issue is such a big deal. Civil rights and the freedom that makes America great aren’t taken away overnight – they’re gradually eroded, and such erosion starts with specific cases that are ‘trivial’ and ‘no big deal’. If the populace fails to remain vigilant and demonstrate outrage at these flagrant (albeit minor) violations, those with a hunger for power and control will expand their reach further and further, with the hope that by the time enough people DO object, the right to object at all can be revoked and silenced.
This type of behavior by our school administrators and faculty is a clear example of how our education system has degenerated from generating the best and the brightest minds in the world, to a factory churning out mindless drones by the millions: with infringement of civil liberties over trivial issues, using such things as the narrow end of a wedge to expand the suppression of rights further and further, until any expression of individuality or creativity is stifled. The existence of school uniform dress codes in the first place is a stepping stone on this path, and has already been crossed; the next step is clearly to provide exemptions and privileges for those who conform to the beliefs, ideals, or preferences of those in charge, while revoking them from all others.
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- Lyssa - Feb 7, 2010 at 4:07 AM
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If you stifle an expression of dissenting opinions, and use the fact that someone expresses such dissent as a justification for stricter enforcement of conformity, you’re already at or beyond the point of ‘China and other communist countries’. In my opinion, de facto demand for self-censorship (which you seem to be supporting here) is even more insidious and anti-Freedom than a direct legislated censorship: the effect of forcibly stifling freedom of expression is the same, but at least when the authorities are willing to document their anti-freedom position, it makes it clear where they stand, for those who wish to oppose it. Done your way, they retain a ‘plausible deniability’, and can claim that they’re not censoring – despite the fact that anyone who refuses to comply with the ‘non-existent’ censorship will be chastised as harshly as though the censorship were officially in place.
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- free - Feb 7, 2010 at 1:17 PM
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bla bla bla….. the fact that the educational system in this country yields to things so mundane and commercialized like the Stupid Bowl is a primary reason this country is falling. Perhaps they should have instituted a succeed at scholastics day. But, yee haw to whatever teams are “PLAYIN!”
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- free - Feb 7, 2010 at 1:18 PM
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bla bla bla….. the fact that the educational system in this country yields to things so mundane and commercialized like the Stupid Bowl is a primary reason this country is falling. Perhaps they should have instituted a succeed at scholastics day. But, yee haw to whatever teams are “PLAYIN!”
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- free - Feb 7, 2010 at 1:20 PM
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bla bla bla….. the fact that the educational system in this country yields to things so mundane and commercialized like the Stupid Bowl is a primary reason this country is falling. Perhaps they should have instituted a succeed at scholastics day. But, yee haw to whatever teams are “PLAYIN!”
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- #1 #1 colts fan - Feb 7, 2010 at 6:46 PM
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Yes,the colts do rock!!!!(not to coltsrock1298) but I dont understand the big deal, he is a young kid trying to be a big fan for his home town and team. Im from Indiana and I wore a lot of colts stuff one time, didnt get in trouble.
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- #1 #1 colts fan - Feb 7, 2010 at 6:48 PM
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Yes,the colts do rock!!!!(not to coltsrock1298) but I dont understand the big deal, he is a young kid trying to be a big fan for his home town and team. Im from Indiana and I wore a lot of colts stuff one time, didnt get in trouble.
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- Larry Sanders - Feb 8, 2010 at 4:44 PM
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I think they should get the ACLU out again for calling it “BLACK” and gold day…
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- Shuntal - Feb 8, 2010 at 4:53 PM
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I live in Atlanta and am from Chicago. I represent the Bears every chance I get. So I agree with the father and think that he should file a formal complaint with the board of education. I don’t care if it’s Black and Gold day. If uniform attire was slacked for the upcoming superbowl he has the right to wear whatever jersey he wants.
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- common sense not so common - Feb 8, 2010 at 5:14 PM
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Black and Gold day has been a frequent response. The school officials cannot allow one without the other. It’s against his freedom of speech. It’s the same as saying, “Everyone who is a Saints fan doesn’t have to adhere to the dress code today but”….. “If you are a Colts fan you have to wear your uniform!!!” When did your preference of a professional sports team decide whether or not you had to abide by the dress code? As for the kid being a jerk. If he wanted to do that he could have worn a Peyton Manning jersey(University of Tenessee) as opposed to His Addai jersey (LSU).
