Parents want harsher punishment for Confederate flag photo
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- A group of parents called a news conference Wednesday to call for harsher punishments for East Chapel Hill High School students involved in posting a photo to social media.
The picture shows two girls waving confederate flags. The person who posted the picture included the caption "South will rise."
Under that, someone commented "Already bought my first slave."
The photo was taken in Gettysburg during a school trip focused on the Civil War a few weeks ago.
At Wednesday's news conference, concerned parents said students have felt intimidated by the post and other social media remarks. They said it's been an especially difficult time for students in the wake of events in Baltimore and Ferguson, Missouri.
They said school policy calls for students to think before they post.
"It states that social media can be used for fun, but not to expose or hurt others," said a parent.
The father of the girl who posted the photo was in the audience at the news conference and got into a confrontation with the organizers.
"I can tell you that my daughter was not raised in an environment of hate," said Ronald Creatore.
Afterwards, he told reporters his daughter did not intend the post to be racist.
"This was never intended in the way that it's being perceived in the community. In hindsight, she now understands that this led to, but that wasn't her intention at the time that she posted the photograph," said Creatore.
The school system says it has taken action, but can't say exactly how it addressed the student's conduct because of privacy rules.
"I can't get into the specific consequences, but within our policy, these specific activities that happened didn't rise to the level of a suspend-able offense," said Superintendent Thomas Forcella.
In a statement to the media, Forcella said he considers Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools a progressive district that takes issues of race very seriously, but students do have free speech rights guaranteed under the First Amendment.
"Implicit bias does exist in all of us, regardless of our race. We need to address it directly whether it is in classrooms or in teachable moments on athletic fields, at extra-curricular events or in our school hallways," Forcella said in part.
