A Colorado high school decided celebrating American patriotism was too risky and canceled “’Merica Monday” in February to the uproar of parents and students, according to infowars.com. What was supposed to kick off the winter spirit week of Fort Collins High School became a national news topic when school administrators deemed the celebration too exclusive and thought it would offend people from other countries.The article from infowars.com states, “Upon learning of the administrations’ denial, outraged parents—who wish to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal—also disapproved of the school’s actions.”Tiffany Evans, a parent and Laie resident studying exercise and sports science, was surprised by the high school’s actions and thought they were misguided. She said, “In the school’s efforts to not offend maybe one or two people, they have offended the majority of the school. Celebrating the principles this great country was founded on should be encouraged, not discouraged.”When a second option called “My Country Monday,” was suggested, school administrators also rejected it. It was ultimately allowed after Todd Starnes of Fox News called and asked for an interview for more information on the subject. Manu Danielson, a junior in psychology from Arizona, considered the thoughts of individuals who were supposedly in danger of being offended by “Merica Monday.” He said, “I feel like we need to have a set of principles that we have to hold onto. It just seems ridiculous that everything changes when somebody doesn’t get the rights they feel they should have, or when they don’t get what they want.”Infowars.com makes it clear that this kind of behavior, although shocking, is not entirely new. Salazar writes, “Schools being used as tools of indoctrination and political repression is nothing new, but the move towards demonizing allegiance to America and its Constitutional ideals is relatively new and has seemingly accelerated in the past few decades.” He continues on to say that young and unsuspecting students in many states are having curriculums forced upon them which promote the opposition of American sovereignty and free speech, and which emphasize globalist principals. Emily Georgeson, senior in social work from California, was equally opposed to the high school administrators’ mentality. In her opinion the option of having a spirit week devoted in part to the celebration of America is completely acceptable. She stated, “It just seems silly—over the top. I feel like I should be able to wear red, white, and blue, and nobody should be able to tell me not to. Patriotism shouldn’t be confined to the Fourth of July.”
Writer: Hannah Packard ~ Multimedia Journalist
