“Francis” demonstration was an attempt to show that our freedom of speech is so vast, it even protects us when we protest our own government.
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Look up “chutzpah” in the dictionary, and you may very well find an image of Massey Hill Classical High School history teacher Lee Francis.
“Dr. Frank Till made it clear that there could have been other ways to teach this, but I chose this method and it’s not necessarily wrong that I did”, he said.
According to the teacher, student Alex Dunn “broke the law” by taking his picture in the classroom.
Till did not say what that discipline would be, but the Fayetteville Observer reported that Lee Francis was suspended for 10 days without pay. The class had been discussing the Supreme Court case, Texas vs. Johnson, which is about on a conviction for burning the flag that was overturned.
“Hey, listen you American-hating piece of [expletive], how ’bout you shove that American flag up your ass”, was one such voicemail Francis received and played for CBS North Carolina. Although I disagree with many of his statements and wish he had remained silent, there was nothing said that violated school policy.
Francis has been placed on administrative leave as the school investigates the incident.
After the story hit the news and social media, Francis has received hundreds of hateful responses, has been called ethnic slurs, and even received death threats-all in the name of teaching his students about freedom. This was never meant to have the fallout that it did, and it was never meant to have people suffering from the same treatment I am.
“But when he stepped on the flag — I just thought about all these men and women who fought for that flag that he just walked on — all these men and women who’ve come home with that flag draped over their coffin”.
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Why, it’s nearly as though his fearless flag-stomping wasn’t motivated by a deep, abiding respect for the freedom of expression at all.
