Mtn. View students asked to take down Confederate flags

A Mountain View High School student says his freedom of speech was violated after school officials told him to wrap up his Mississippi flag because it had a Confederate flag symbol on it.

Dacoda Crane and his friends fly the American, Confederate (battle) and Gadsden (Don’t Tread On Me) flags on the back of their vehicles.

Crane said Friday it’s a way of showing family heritage and American pride.

“it’s where my family grew up, it’s a heritage thing,” he says.

School officials say they were notified about the situation earlier this week.

“We had two students who in the last week plus or so who had been flying confederate flags from their vehicles,” Bend-LaPine School District official Jay Mathisen said.

Currently, the Bend-LaPine School district doesn’t have any rules in place which says students are not allowed to bring any type of flags on school grounds.

District officials say they didn’t violate Crane’s freedom of speech.

“Balancing freedom of speech rights and balancing safe and orderly learning environment that this is a reasonable path,” Mathisen said.

Crane says students think he’s symbolizing hate when he drives around with these flags but that is not the case, he said.

“I don’t believe in racism or hate,” Crane said.

Crane says for now he’ll follow the administration orders and will wrap the flags when he goes on campus.