Allow American Flags in Arizona College Classrooms

The American Flag stands as a symbol of Freedom and Equality. Many brave men and women in the United States Armed Forces have made huge sacrifices to protect the freedoms that our flag represents. I support that the American flag is permanently displayed inside the classrooms of public schools throughout the State of Arizona. I believe that the presence of the flag in public school classrooms is a powerful teaching tool that helps young students learn to respect Our Country, Our Freedoms, and Our Way of Life.

Yet, I also strongly believe that a properly displayed American Flag should be a permanent fixture inside classrooms at universities and colleges throughout the State of Arizona. As such, I strongly support the goal of the Operation Angel: Flag Fund of Arizona to raise enough money through private contributions to permanently place American Flags inside all classrooms at the University of Arizona in Tucson. I also want it to be known that I strongly disagree with the decision of University of Arizona President, Dr. Peter Likins, not to allow Operation Angel to place American Flags in classrooms. I join all of these others in asking that Dr. Likins seriously reconsider his position on this issue, and I am confident that public support for this endeavor will ultimately achieve the noble goal of placing American flags for permanent display inside UA classrooms.

Furthermore, I support passage of legislation at the Arizona legislature similar to Floridas Carey Baker Freedom Flag Act of 2004. This legislation mandates that all public colleges and universities in Florida have American flags installed inside of their classrooms by August 2005. The Florida law gives each university president the charge of setting up and directing donation accounts to pay for the flags. While no specific legislation is yet written here in Arizona, a funding mechanism similar to that of the Florida law would be an acceptable option.