Some teachers feel as though American flags no longer have a place in classrooms.
Fox News reported, A California school district is investigating a teacher after she posted a video admitting that she encouraged her students to pledge allegiance to a gay pride flag after she removed the American flag from her classroom.
“Okay, so during third period, we have announcements and they do the pledge of allegiance,” the teacher, identified as Kristin Pitzen of Newport Mesa School District in Orange County, said in a video posted to social media. “I always tell my class, stand if you feel like it, don’t stand if you feel like it, say the words if you want, you don’t have to say the words”.
The teacher claims that the flag was removed during the pandemic and alleges it made her feel “uncomfortable”.
If the flag of the country in which she lives leads her to feel uncomfortable, perhaps she should pack her things and move to a place where she’d feel more suited.
In its absence, the students were curious as to where they should look if they decided to pledge. Pitzen pointed to her pride flag, instructing her students to look in its direction.
She explained, “In the meantime, I tell this kid, ‘We do have a flag in the class that you can pledge your allegiance to. And he like, looks around and goes, ‘Oh, that one?'” as he pointed to the rainbow banner.
“We are aware of this incident and are investigating. While we do not discuss employee related matters, we can tell you that showing respect and honor for our nation’s flag is a value that we instill in our students and an expectation of our employees. We take matters like this seriously and will be taking action to address it,” the school told Fox in a statement.
Understandably, the disrespect Pitzen showed for her country was met with backlash on social media.