In my hometown of Houston, a group of high school students have been slapped with a fine for attempting to fly the Mexican flag on the school’s flagpole in honor of Fiestas Patrias, Mexico’s independence day:

On September 15, a group of students say they just wanted to display their cultural pride. But school administrators say they broke the rules.

Who knew the flagpole at Austin High could produce legal questions and cultural concerns all at once? Last month, five students tried to hoist a Mexican flag during school hours on the eve of a Mexican holiday. Campus police promptly ticketed the boys for disrupting an outdoor class, which they say was assembled nearby.

HISD spokesperson Terry Abbott said, “It could have been for any kind of classroom disruption. We issue those types of tickets all the time. They’re very common.”

The students’ attorney disagrees, and says this is more about the fact that Austin High School, which is located in a heavily Latino neighborhood, was the site of protests of the immigration bill months back:

Castenada says HISD is going overboard. Instead of respecting free speech, using the kids as examples. He said the same type of justice would not have been likely if they had been trying to raise the Canadian flag.

Via / KTRK TV Houston