SYRACUSE — Wawasee High School students spoke out after they were told by administration officials that they can no longer wear or fly the Confederate flag on school property.

This comes after the school received complaints from members of the public.

“We saw some ladies taking pictures of our trucks and we knew we were going to get called down to the office and soon enough, we did,” Wawasee junior Bailey Kessler said. “A guy at the high school told us nicely to take them down because the liberal Indiana page didn’t like it, and we didn’t agree with that.”

These students reacted by flying Confederate flags on their trucks to school on Thursday and even wearing it on their clothing.

The school responded in a statement, saying there was also “social media hate speech targeting students of a different color.”

(Click on the attached document to read the full statement from Wawasee Community Schools.)

They continue their statement by saying, “Students of color have approached teachers and administrators fearful of the situation and unable to carry on with their educational tasks.”

“When you see a bunch of boys like us flying them on our trucks, we don’t mean no harm,” Wawasee senior Austin Murphy said. “We’re just trying to state a point that we’re raised a southern way. It’s a brotherhood, too. We’re all gentlemen. None of us will treat nobody in harm.”

The students say school leaders went out and wrapped up the flags they found in the parking lot.

They also say they’ve received threats from other students while in school.

“They’ve threatened to beat me up,” one student said. “I’ve been chased down the hallway because they said they were going to whoop me for flying a racist flag.”

The school says, “While great leeway is allowed in free speech, behavior which is plainly offensive crosses that line.”

“They’d go to the extent of calling Stuckman’s and towing our stuff,” Murphy said. “I’d love to find another spot in the community to park if they would let us.”

Wawasee Community Schools say the authorities have been contacted to investigate the situation.

Source: WNDU