11-Year-Old Arrested Over Pledge of Allegiance | Daniella Castanheira

An 11-year-old student was arrested on February 4, after he refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance. The substitute teacher in charge did not know that students were not required by the district to take part, and called the school administration when the sixth grader, who is black, went on to say that the flag is racist and offensive to black people. A school resource officer and the school administrator repeatedly asked the student to leave class, who did while reportedly making threats. The student was arrested for disrupting a school function and resisting an officer without violence, and was taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center. Since then, the boy's mother, as well as the ACLU of Florida, has expressed their disappointment in how the situation was handled. The substitute teacher was asked to leave campus and will no longer be allowed to work in district schools.

This article was written by Darran Simon, who is a black person himself, and was updated on February 18th, 14 days after the incident. Although it is never stated that, "this is wrong," it is obvious through wording and the testimonies included that Simon is in support of the student arrested. The fact that the kid was arrested for speaking out against the Pledge of Allegiance makes me think about the Espionage and Sedition Acts that were used during WWI, which made it illegal to speak against America. I agree with the student's mom; the way this situation was handled is ridiculous. Yes, the kid should not have made threats, but the substitute teacher should have known the protocol of her own job, and the campus' school officer should have consulted the administration before charging in and making the arrest.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/18/us/florida-pledge-of-allegiance-altercation-arrest/index.html