After refusing to stand for the Pledge Of Allegiance, an 11-year-old in Polk County, Florida was kicked out of class and eventually arrested for being disruptive and disobeying commands to calm down and leave the classroom.
According to Bay News 9, the incident began when a substitute asked the student to stand for the pledge, the student then expressed the anthem was offensive to black people.
The teacher then replied by telling the student to move away, “Well, you can always go back, because I came here from Cuba and the day I feel like I’m not welcome here anymore would find another place to live.”
Dhakira Talbot, the student’s mother, felt like the teacher’s remarks were inappropriate, “She was wrong. She was way out of place. If she felt like there was an issue with my son not standing for the flag, she should’ve resolved that in a way different manner than she did.”
According to the arrest affidavit, the student was arrested by the school officials because he refused to follow commands, called school leaders racist and was disruptive. They said he threatened to get the school resource officer and principal fired and to beat the teacher, which the student denies stating.
Talbot is working with the Poor and Minority Justice Association to seek justice for her son, “I want the charges dropped and I want the school to be held accountable for what happened because it shouldn’t have been handled the way it was handled.”
