Let us grant that the four boys at Live Oak High School who wore American flag T-shirts on Cinco de Mayo were not behaving sensitively toward their Latino classmates.
Let us acknowledge that they were immature, even offensive, when they picked a Mexican holiday to exhibit their patriotism.
It was a more subtle message than the Border Patrol T-shirts that some kids tried wearing in the San Jose Unified District. But given our battles over immigration, it was not a wholly friendly message.
Let us grant all that. It was still a mistake for an assistant principal to ask them to turn the T-shirts inside out or go home. It was a mistake not to let them wear the flag.
I don't say that because I'm a big flag-waving patriot. I loathe the simple dictums of the Tea Party. I hate the Arizona law that allows cops to demand papers on the street.
But as a professional rabble-rouser, I believe in free speech, even offensive speech. And I don't think an American