CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A Facebook post by a teacher's advocate is making rounds on social media and generating lots of debate. It includes a picture of an unidentified Tuloso-Midway High School student wearing a shirt that has the Confederate flag prominently displayed.
The post said the t-shirt was being worn by a student in the cafeteria of Tuloso-Midway High School.
The picture was taken back in January, but Dr. Nancy Vera, teacher, and president of the American Federation of Teachers posted the picture on Monday, saying "I'm disgusted."
Vera said the shirt shows the need for sensitivity training for that student and all students in local districts.
"When they wear t-shirts such as that, it's an in-your-face type of thing, and especially when it said 'learn your history,'" Vera said. "Well, many of us do know the history of the United States and slavery and the plight of the African-American, and that's not something we take lightly."
Tuloso-Midway Superintendent Rodney Sumner said the school in no way condones the student wearing the shirt, and that it violates the school's strict dress code.
"We've got a really, probably one of the strictest dress codes in Corpus Christi, and my administrators do a good job enforcing that," Sumner said. "But I'm not going to say that at any given moment someone may be wearing something or doing something they should not do. But when it comes to our attention, we'll deal with it, and we'll administer discipline consequences."
Sumner said he is disappointed that the photo came to light three and a half months after it happened, but they are looking into which student may have worn the shirt.
Vera said she doesn't know why the person who sent her the picture waited so long but does believe in the photo's authenticity. She hopes the school district will consider sensitivity training for the entire student body.