UPDATE: Trial set over Rebel flag prom dress: SCHOOL VIOLATED HER RIGHTS, TEEN SAYS

Heritage Costs Honor Student Her Prom

Don Shelton
Chief of Heritage Defense, Army of Tennessee Dept., SCV

FLATWOODS, KY: Jacqueline Duty was a typical high school senior honor student; looking forward to getting through with finals, graduating, and of course going to her prom. Jacqueline is proud of her Southern heritage, and decided to make her own dress, tastefully using the battle flag as a motif. The school found out what she planned, and threatened her with suspension. Jacqueline decided to stand up for herself and her heritage anyway.

When Jacqueline wrote to me she described best what happened the night of the prom:

"The school spoke to my mother and I as if we were stupid and with no respect. You wouldn't believe how they acted. When the principle told my boyfriend and I to leave he, I'm guessing, wanted to show his anger and smacked the hood of my boyfriend's mom's car. They acted out in the wrong way trying to use force when we weren't even putting up a fight. I wasn't there to cause problems I was going to do as I was told so that way what they did was all on them and none of this could come back on me. I was so embarrassed by all of this because they wouldn't even let us out of our automobile and yelled and screamed all of these things at my date and myself in front of a large crowd who were mostly there to see me and support what I was standing up for. So after all this I ended up spending my senior prom on the sidewalk in front of my school and danced my first and last dance of my senior year there."

The out-of-control school officials brought law enforcement just to make sure that this "dangerous" young lady wouldn't be able to go to her prom. Thanks to the Alabama division, Jacqueline was invited to their Jefferson Davis Ball in the Cradle of the Confederacy. Jacqueline was honored and had a great time. This spring has seen several school systems in Kentucky and elsewhere seek to challenge the Castorina case law, but this is, in my opinion, the most disgusting. I have spoken with the Duty family and several attorneys about proceeding with a suit. Every effort is being made by the Kentucky division to get this lawsuit filed sooner rather than later.

Don Shelton,
AOT Heritage Chief


HAS THIS HAPPENED TO YOU?

Are you a student, or parent of a student in KY, TN, OH or MI who has been told to remove Confederate symbols from your personal clothing, vehicle etc. by public school administrators? There is help. The 6th Circuit has ruled that schools cannot "single out Confederate flags" for bans when they simply fear it may cause a problem.

If this has happened to you, go to the two websites below and print out these court decisions. One is Castorina v. Madison County School Board which is the 6th Circuit ruling that is specific to Confederate flags and KY, TN, OH and MI. The other one is Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District which is the landmark Supreme Court decision that lays down the groundwork for public school students' first amendment rights, and upon which Castorina is based.

Print these two decisions out and give them to the school administrator, asking them to confer with the school system's attorney.

SUPREME COURT DECISION IN CATORINA v. MADISON CO.

SUPREME COURT DECISION IN TINKER v. DES MOINES SCHOOL DIST.

COMMENTARY ON THE CAUSE

CHILDRESS LETTER TO GOVERNOR FLETCHER

JACQUELINE DUTY CONFEDERATE PROM DRESS LAWSUIT


If showing the school administrators these cases does not cause them to lift an inappropriate ban contact the following:

Southern Legal Resource Center: CONTACT THE SLRC NOW
Kentucky Division, SCV, Heritage Defense Chief: Don Shelton