Popular Superman Star Backs Kid Kicked Out of School Over Gadsden Flag
The Colorado boy who refused to go gently into the deep, dark night of bureaucratic regulations has a Super fan.
Dean Cain, who played Superman in “Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,” has posted a shout-out to Jaiden Rodriguez, who, along with his mom, bucked the school’s decision to punish him for wearing a Gadsden flag patch on his backpack.
“Good job, Jaiden. It takes bravery to stand alone for what is right,” Cain, who supports all manner of charities, posted on X. Cain has also been unabashed about his support of various conservative causes.
Good job, Jaiden. It takes bravery to stand alone for what is right.
— Dean Cain (@RealDeanCain) August 30, 2023
Cain is hardly the first celebrity to support Jaiden.
Country music star John Rich posted a similar message last week, complete with a video of him raising the yellow flag with its coiled snaked and the words “Don’t Tread on Me” emblazoned upon it.
Although days of celebration have followed the boy’s return to school, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression indicated that Jaiden’s struggle may not be over.
In an Aug. 31 letter to the school, it said that Jaiden’s mother, Eden Rodriguez, has been informed that the school’s permission to wear the flag patch has a condition.
“Ms. Rodriguez has informed FIRE that the only communication she received was from Harrison School District TwoAssistant Superintendent Mike Claudio, who told her Jaiden could continue to display the Gadsden flag patch only so long as no staff member or student complained about it,” the letter said.
Today, FIRE wrote The Vanguard School after learning the school will allow the student to wear the Gadsden flag patch… but only if nobody complains.
And the school is *completely prohibiting* the student from displaying a patch expressing support for gun rights. More to come. https://t.co/KUsfASa9ad pic.twitter.com/4jahj0ya08
— FIRE (@TheFIREorg) August 31, 2023
“Jaiden also is still not allowed to display the FPC patch on his backpack under any circumstances,” the letter said, using the acronym for the Firearms Policy Coalition.
The letter said the boy’s school cannot “condition Jaiden keeping the Gadsden flag patch on his backpack on the absence of student or staff complaints. Without more, a single complaint about a student’s speech cannot constitute substantial disruption.”
“The First Amendment does not allow the ‘heckler’s veto’ as envisioned by the district’s assistant superintendent, where anybody can suppress a student’s speech or viewpoint simply by objecting to it,” the letter added.
The letter said the school should abandon its efforts to censor students.
“FIRE calls on The Vanguard School to immediately and publicly confirm it will allow Jaiden Rodriguez to display on his backpack at school his Gadsden flag and Firearms Policy Coalition patches—and any others that cause no substantial disruption—without facing punishment or removal, regardless of whether students or staff complain,” the letter said.
In an Op-Ed in the Denver Gazette, Jon Caldara, president of the Independence Institute in Denver, said there is a message for parents in Jaiden’s experience, noting that Eden Rodriguez had to explain that the flag was from the Revolutionary War era and was not a pro-slavery banner.
“The most surprising and disappointing point about this kerfuffle is that, even at a reputable charter school with a classical curriculum, with an emphasis on teaching historic accuracy, staff needs to be schooled by parents that one of America’s founding flags has nothing to do with slavery,” he wrote.
“Parents, you should not be intimidated to politely record your meetings with school administrators. In Colorado you do not need their permission or knowledge to do it secretly. Your kids’ futures lie in the balance,” Caldara added.
“Perhaps the most terrifying part of this is how groupthink can take one of the most patriotic flags of unity in our history and, over the course of just a few years, turn it into a symbol of division,” Caldara wrote, before further adding, “The considerably greater takeaway is parents should record their encounters with school officials. It might be the thing that guarantees an education for your child.”
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
