Texas HS weighs Confederate flag ban

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SAN MARCOS, Texas, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- A Texas school board is weighing whether to ban the Confederate flag from being displayed by the school mascot at sporting events, district officials said.

The flag, which athletes at Hays High School in San Marcos, Texas, sported on uniforms until it was removed amid questions of racial sensitivity in 2000, remains prevalent at football games. Outgoing Superintendent Jeremy Lyon has urged the school board to ban all displays of the Confederate flag, saying it sends the wrong message to black students, the Austin (Texas) American Statesman said Sunday.

The district, which is comprised of 68 percent minority students, adopted a policy that banned the bars and stars from being displayed on school-owned uniforms, but specifically said students would be allowed to display the flag of their own accord.

"I have the utmost respect for history, but we need to make sure that we are creating school districts that are welcoming and inviting to all students," Lyon said.

Racial tension isn't new to the school. The American Statesmen said in May a black teacher's classroom was vandalized with two 14-year-old students painting "KKK" and "catch em kill em" on the door. The teacher has since left the school.