Colorado School Backs Down After Banning Student From Having 'Don't Tread On Me' Patch

The Vanguard School will no longer ban a young student from having a Gadsden flag on his bag.

A 12-year-old student named Jaiden was filmed being told by a school official that he couldn't have the "Don't Tread on Me" patch on his bag "due to its origins with slavery and slave trade."

The Vanguard School will no longer ban the Gadsden flag. (Photo by Interim Archives/Getty Images)

The video was incredibly disturbing and unsettling. The Gadsden flag and the "Don't Tread on Me" message are rooted in the Revolutionary War, and the flag has absolutely nothing to do with racism.

Now, the adults in the room have come to their senses and Jaiden will be allowed to keep wearing the patch.

The Vanguard School backs down on Gadsden flag stance.

"At this time, the Vanguard School Board and the District have informed the student's family that he may attend school with the Gadsden flag patch visible on his backpack," The Vanguard School Board of Directors announced after the video of Jaiden being told he couldn't have it went viral.

You can read the entire message from the Vanguard School Board of Directors below.

However, Harrison School District 2 is attempting to spin the situation claiming the public only has part of the story. The district released the following statement (via Fox News):

There has been National media attention on our charter school, The Vanguard School, related to a student having the Gadsden flag on his backpack. Unfortunately, this story is incomplete. The patch in question was part of half a dozen other patches of semi-automatic weapons. The student has removed the semi-automatic patches. As a school district, we will continue to ensure all students and employees can learn and work in a safe and nurturing environment. The student returned to class without incident after removing the patches of semi-automatic weapons from the backpack. The Vanguard School and Harrison School District 2 worked in collaboration to resolve this matter

However, it's hard to take that stance seriously because it wasn't mentioned in the video and it wasn't mentioned in the emails released that were sent by administrator Jeff Yokum.

Cooler heads prevail in a win for freedom and the Gadsden flag.

Allowing the patch to remain is 100% the correct decision. The flag isn't racist at all, and telling a young boy who is proud of American history he can't have it because of a completely fabricated slavery claim is unacceptable and despicable.

Fortunately, there was video of the exchange between Jaiden's mother and the school official. What if there hadn't been? Would anything have changed? Probably not. It just would have been "she said vs. she said."

However, it was over once Governor Jared Polis weighed in supporting the flag being worn. At that point, there was little the school could do other than back down.

Credit to Jaiden, his mother and all those who came in with their support. It feels good to see common sense win, even if it shouldn't have ever reached this point.