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Former officer slams school's 'absurd' ban on sister's pro-police flag in classroom
By Amy Nelson
Published September 28, 2021
A former police officer is speaking out after his sister, a teacher in Washington state, was told to remove a pro-police flag from her middle-school classroom. Chris Sutherland questioned the reasoning behind the decision, which he called absurd on "Fox & Friends."
The Marysville school district explained their decision Monday in a letter to families and staff, claiming that the "Thin Blue Line" flag is a political symbol that, without context, can be interpreted in a variety of ways by students.
WASHINGTON SCHOOL BANS PRO-POLICE FLAG, CLAIMS IT'S ‘POLITICAL,' BUT PERMITS BLM AND LGBT MESSAGES
"It's kind of absurd in a way, if you think about it, because we're talking about a simple flag that represents law enforcement, which in a whole is a great organization," Sutherland told host Brian Kilmeade.
"I don't understand why my sister can't have that up on her wall."
Other political symbols like Black Lives Matter and LGBT flags, however, are allowed. In the letter, the school board said these symbols may help students "feel both heard and seen" and cited "educational purposes" for allowing them.
Sutherland, who was an officer with the Marysville Police Department, explained the educational purposes for having pro-police displays in schools as well.
"I used my six years as a [school resource officer] here in Washington to educate kids," he said.
"I think it’s very informational and educational for these families and kids and even educators to have us in the schools."
Sutherland’s sister was told by the district to stop displaying the "Thin Blue Line" flag in her classroom or risk "further disciplinary action."
The teacher complied with the district’s direction, but she told HR that it "has been the most traumatic and hostile" ordeal she had dealt with at the school.
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Sutherland said he has received support since speaking out.
"I’m just really glad that everybody is stepping forward and basically saying, ‘Chris, I’m glad you’re doing this,’" he said, "It needs to be heard."
Fox News' Emma Colton contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/washington-school-ban-thin-blue-line-police-flag-classroom