Dear [Your Elected Official],

<p>I ask that you reconsider the action of the Tullahoma City Board of Education and rescind the amendments you made to policy 4.400 on October 21, which banned most flags other the U.S. flag and the Tennessee flag in or on school buildings.</p> <p><strong>Rushed policy change</strong>:  There was very little public discussion of the policy proposal before the vote on October 21.  It is not clear that there were two full public readings of the proposal, as board policy 1.600 requires. I value transparency in local government and some key questions remain unclear. Did the policy proposal appear publicly on an agenda twice? When did Board Members discuss the policy?</p> <p><strong>First Amendment issues:  </strong>Restrictions on the free expression of faculty, school personnel, and students raise obvious First Amendment issues. I understand that free speech is not absolute in schools. But even the state's anti-transgender pronoun law recognizes that teachers do not shed their First Amendment rights. TCA § 49-6-5102. The new policy may additionally interfere with a teacher's right to foster a safe environment for all students. TCA § 49-5-209  Students, of course, are not government employees. The current Tullahoma policy is written in passive voice--"No flag...may be displayed." So it seems to put in place an absolute restriction on a student's ability to wear, carry, or display a flag in school other than the U.S. or Tennessee flag. When speaking of the rights of public school students, the ACLU notes:</p> <p><em>"You have the right to speak out, hand out flyers and petitions, and wear expressive clothing in school — as long as you don’t disrupt the functioning of the school or violate school policies that don’t hinge on the message expressed.</em><br /><em>What counts as 'disruptive' will vary by context, but a school disagreeing with your position or thinking your speech is controversial or in 'bad taste' is not enough to qualify. Courts have upheld students’ rights to wear things like an anti-war armband, an armband opposing the right to get an abortion, and a shirt supporting the LGBTQ community."</em></p> <p><strong>Inviting litigation:  </strong>It is vitally important the Tullahoma City Board of Education follow the proper procedure in adopting policy changes. And it is essential that any policy adopted not interfere with people's rights under the Constitution.  Flaws in procedure and Bill of Rights violations invite expensive, painful litigation against the school district. These are compelling reasons for the Board to revisit its action. I urge you to do so.</p> <p>Thank you for considering my views.</p>