[R]UTLAND—Three days before a Black Lives Matter flag was scheduled to fly for the first time at Rutland High School, a school board member tried to rescind a previous vote of approval for the flag.
School Board member Kam Johnston said he wanted more time to address concerns and gather more student input. He also spoke about instituting a flag policy—a topic he brought up at a previous meeting.
“I wanted a policy in place that was sustainable,” Johnston said.
Johnston’s motion ultimately failed 9-1, giving victory to students who proposed the flag.
“I’m happy that the school board made a stand again, despite the controversy around the Black Lives Matter flag,” said student Greta Solsaa, 18. “It was frustrating because we had already won this victory.”
Rutland will join a number of Vermont high schools where students have lobbied to raise the Black Lives Matter flag. The first was Montpelier High School in February 2018.
The board had voted unanimously March 26 to fly the Black Lives Matter flag for 400 consecutive days starting April 12 after a lengthy debate. Since then, the discussion about the flag has continued at Rutland High School.
About a week after the board vote, Rutland High School students Trevor MacKay and Maya Sobel wrote a letter to school board members calling the vote “alarming.”
“We feel the board did not receive a fair sampling and representation of the desires of the public and student body the night their decision was made,” they wrote.
MacKay and Sobel, both 17, called the flag a political movement and questioned its impact on free speech.
“Rutland High School must stay a place where students can remain free from the pressure of being told how to think,” they wrote.
In a later interview, Sobel and MacKay said they supported their classmates’ effort to combat racism, but said the flag was too controversial.
“As an Israeli student…I’m uncomfortable having a flag that’s anti-zionist,” Sobel said, explaining Black Lives Matter leaders have targeted Israelis. “I just want to feel welcomed.”
Students and parents spoke about significant racial issues in the school at the previous March 26 meeting. They said racial slurs were being muttered in the hallways and threats were being made against black students.
About 100 people attended each meeting. Some wore Black Lives Matter t-shirts and others held signs and banners in support of the students. The debate about the flag and school violence issues has, at times, drawn emotional responses from community members.
Parent Shawn Graham told the board Tuesday that the flag doesn’t belong in the school. He referenced a Black Lives Matter rally in Minnesota where some protestors were caught on video chanting “pigs in a blanket, fry ’em like bacon.” Some viewed the Black Lives Matter movement as being anti-police.
“I don’t like it, I don’t want it in the school,” Graham told the board, as he spoke at length about a myriad of school issues and refused to stop talking when asked.
“Stop this racist rant,” one member of the audience shouted to Graham as he kept talking.
“It’s a racist rant?” Graham said as he turned toward the audience. “Why? Because it doesn’t go your way? That’s the problem…everybody’s a racist,” Graham said before storming out of the building.
MacKay and Sobel, who also wrote a letter to the editor of the Rutland Herald, said their opposition to the flag wasn’t about racism.
“If we see racism in it’s ugly face, we’ll be the first people to go against it,” MacKay said. “We don’t feel like this (flag) is the right means to go against it.”
MacKay and Sobel met with their peers after school on Tuesday before the meeting.
“It’s just annoying—they bring it up a week before we’re about to raise it,” said student Alex White, 18, who was one of three students that asked the school board’s permission to fly the flag.
The flag was proposed by students in the New Neighbors Club, which is focused on creating a more inclusive school environment. The club had been planning to fly the Black Lives Matter flag for a year.
Student advisor Jennie Gartner told the board Tuesday that students were “emotionally exhausted” from the ups and downs surrounding the debate.
Student supporters said the flag wasn’t about politics, it was about inclusion.
“It’s taking a stance on something that’s happened in the past and something that’s happening today,” said student Haley Lassen, 17, in an interview.
Johnston was the only board member who voted in favor of his motion after a brief discussion.
“This decision was not rushed,” board member Alison Notte said as the audience applauded. “It is simply standing up for a marginalized population.”
The flag will be raised during the school day on Friday.
Students will watch a video about the historical context of the flag before it’s raised for the first time. The flag will be flown for 400 days to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the start of the British slave trade in America.
