Looking Back at an Unequal Struggle
 
From: bernhard1848@att.net
 
Hon. A.G. Hawkins of Huntington, Tennessee, Speaking at a Confederate Reunion.
 
“So my comrades, it will be seen that we were outnumbered by foreign and colored soldiers, and had to contend against a surplus of 2,203,215 loyal patriotic soldiers of our own country.  New York, Iowa and Connecticut furnished more men than were in our entire army. They had an army, a navy and ordinance to begin with, while we had neither. They had money and credit abroad, but we had none. And yet, in spite of all these things, it took four long years for the North to overpower the brave South.
 
History presents no grander page than written by the Confederate soldier. We have the right to point our children and the young people of today to the sanguinary conflict which we have passed through, and teach them that their fathers were not traitors, but brave patriotic soldiers.
 
The Confederate went to battle at the call of his State; he recognized its authority as supreme. We believed we were right and have not changed our minds, you believed you were right, and are of the same opinion still. We cannot agree on this question, but since the close of the war the Confederate soldier has been true to that starry flag, and is ready to follow it with the same patriotic heroism which he followed that one with its stars and bars, which flag was ours. We stained it with our blood, we upheld it as long as we could; we love it yet (and) we love the memories that cluster around it…”
 
Confederate Veteran Magazine, October, 1895
 

From: Thomas Strider, twstrider@earthlink.net
Date: Sat, Oct 31, 2009

This is pathetic that schools in Florida should be so ignorant (and that its voters permit such numbskulls to be principals of the schools their children attend).   

Tom

 

Hawthrone Middle/High Confederate Flag & H.K. Edgerton
October 31, 2009

Dear Superintendent Boyd,

After being made privy to your remarks of not only the issue of the Confederate flag in your school district, and the so called racial tensions of 2007, I am more disturbed about the intentions and conduct of your employee, Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter (Principal), and you, as it relates to my visit to Hawthorne Middle/High on the morning of September 14, 2009.

You speak of swastikas, the KKK and the Confederate Flag as if they are one and the same, and contend with your implications that these Black children have no ownership in the Confederate Flag and should view the Confederate Flag as the promulgation of racial tensions. Make no never mind that the Stars and Stripes flew over the slave ships that brought their ancestors to these shores. Make no never mind that the Stars and Stripes flew over the government that made slavery legal in the Constitution that governed the national law. Make no never mind that the Supreme Court of the United States that ushered in the Jim Crow laws had one descending vote, and that being one lone former Southern plantation owner who felt that the South did not need to be separated from a people that Southern Whites not only knew but loved in lieu of all the things that the North had done during so called Reconstruction to divide and separate Black folks and White folks in the South.

I came to your school on that September morning in hopes to not only heal a rift that might exist between little young Black and White babies because they had not been taught about the love that existed between Southern White folks and Southern Black folks in lieu of the economic institution of slavery that the whole of the so called civilized world had participated in. And of the place of honor and dignity that a man called slave had earned alongside a man he called not only Master, but also family and friend under the banner of the Southern Cross. An honor that the federal school system that you supervise has stripped from the annals of history and now contend with the poverty pimps who fill their coffers that little Black babies should associate our flag as the purveyor of slavery.

I don't know what the intentions of Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter was on that September morning, but to have knowledge withheld from me about the time span of 2007 and 2008 that you define, and to leave me sitting alone donned in the uniform of the Southern soldier, carrying his glorious banner, with a shorten time to adequately explain to these children all the aforementioned, and a do not disturb order given to her staff after putting a bulls eye on my chest is very disturbing.

I have no idea of your place of birth, but should you be from the South, you know that I speak the truth, and no matter the size of your check, you should be ashamed to be in a position to heal the rift placed between these young Black and White children because of a taught lie.

I shall continue contemplating with my attorney bringing actions both civil and criminal against your administration.

Sincerely,

H.K. Edgerton
President
Southern Heritage 411

cc: Mr. William J. Cervone
District Attorney Alachua County
 

From: Carl Burns, caburns1@comcast.net
Date: October 28, 2009

It is wrong to ban Confederate symbols from any school or public place.

Carl Burns
 

We need the help of everyone to overcome the discrimination perpetuated by Principal Veita Jackson-Carter against students who are of proud of their Confederate heritage and ancestors.

We need the help of everyone who believes students have the right to freedom of speech without censure as provided by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Each one that supports the efforts of www.hawthorneheritage.org is helping support the freedom and justice that made America a great nation. Please join the fight for freedom and justice at Hawthorne High/Middle School. Stand up for your children, stand up for the students, and stand up for your rights and the rights of all Americans. Together we can make a difference.

1.  Please contact your School Board members and the Superintendent of Schools and let them know that you do not agree with the banning of Southern Heritage symbols at Hawthorne High/Middle School by Principal Veita Jackson-Carter.  You can also contact the School Board at the following address:

                              School Board of Alachua County
                              Kirby Smith Administrative Center
                              620 East University Avenue
                              Gainesville, Florida 32601-5498
 
     Title                                    Name                                               Email                                             Phone#

Superintendent         Dr. W. Daniel Boyd Jr.                  supt@gm.sbac.edu                           352-955-7880
Board Dist. 5             Virginia S. Childs                          childs@gm.sbac.edu                        352-538-1070
Board Dist. 2             Eileen F. Roy                                 roy@gm.sbac.edu                              352-372-7305
Board Dist. 3             F. Wesley Eubank                        eubank@gm.sbac.edu                      352-332-5878
Board Dist. 4             Barbara Sharpe                           sharpe@gm.sbac.edu                       352-376-0882
Board Dist. 1             Tina Pinkoson                              pinkoson@gm.sbac.edu                   352-375-7960
Principal                     Veita Jackson-Carter                  jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu                     352-481-1900

To send an email to all board members:          boardmembers@gm.sbac.edu

2.  You may also voice your opinion via this web site by sending your comments to: mail@hawthorneheritage.org. We will post appropriate comments. Your name and contact info will be withheld from view by your request.

3.  Visit this site often and support our efforts as they occur. We are planning protest demonstrations, meetings and rallies and many other events in support of our mission.

4. Learn about this growing problem of banning free speech and Southern symbols in our schools and about methods and organizations that can help us overcome this disturbing trend.  Click here.
 

Our Mission is to preserve the Confederate heritage in Alachua County, Fl., particularly as it relates to Hawthorne High/Middle School.

The Confederate Battle Flag is the flag of the confederate soldier and is the icon for our Southern Heritage.

Florida was a Confederate State from 1861 –1865 and many residents of Alachua County, Fl fought and died for the Confederate cause. The history of Alachua County is rich with Confederate history and heritage. For more on Florida's Confederate Heritage Click Here.

Alachua County’s Confederate heritage is not restricted to any race or color. There were soldiers from many races fighting on the side of the Confederates.

It is a fact that over 85% of the 4 million blacks in the South at the time of the War for Southern Independence stayed in the South and supported the Confederate cause. They worked on the farms and in the factories. They did so of their own free will as there was no one to force them to stay. All of the Southern men were fighting in the Confederate army. An estimated 50,000 blacks also served on the front lines as Confederate soldiers.

The Confederate battle flag is the flag of all who have Confederate heritage and that includes 85% of all black folks who had ancestors living in the United States during this period.

Hawthorne High/Middle School has allowed the Confederate Battle flag on apparel and other objects since the first day the doors were opened. There has never been one problem associated with the Confederate flag in the history of Hawthorne High.

And now comes principal Veita Jackson-Carter, who unilaterally and without cause imposes a ban on the Confederate Battle Flag at Hawthorne High/Middle School. In doing so, she violates the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and denies freedom of speech to her students.

Not only does she deny freedom of speech to her students, but she also denigrates all of those who cherish their Confederate ancestors and their Southern heritage. The implications of Carter’s Confederate heritage ban strikes directly at the self worth perception of all of the students who identify with their Confederate heritage. The denigration of their self worth has a tremendous negative effect on these students.

www.HawthorneHeritage.org is established to fight the injustice perpetuated by Principal Veita Jackson-Carter, to overturn her ban of the Confederate Battle Flag at Hawthorne High and to re-establish freedom of expression in this school.

We will do so by all legal means including, but not limited to, all political and judicial solutions.

www.HawthorneHeritage.org will serve as a center of communications for supporters of freedom of speech and Southern heritage. It will teach true history, inform you of related news and advise you of relevant resources. It will provide you with a place that you can express your views and suggest remedies for the gross conduct of principal Veita Jackson-Carter.

We urge you to get involved and join the fight to preserve your Southern heritage. Your children have the right to be proud of who they are. They have the right to be proud of their ancestors and their way of life. They have the right to express themselves without interference from school administrators who have their own agenda.

Visit us often and keep abreast of this struggle for freedom. We will not lie down and let our rights, freedoms and heritage be trampled. We will not succumb to political correctness.

It’s time to stand and fight for your children and their future.

To the left are news articles as they relate to the ongoing discrimination against Southern Heritage.

Please forward news to us at mail@hawthorneheritage.org.

To the left are e-mails that have been chosen by Hawthorne Heritage as interesting and informative and those that support our mission.

If you have a comment, please send us an email to mail@hawthorneheritage.org

NOTE:  We will withhold your name & e-mail address upon request.

Contact Information

Hawthorne Heritage
P O Box 220
Odum GA  31555

Phone:  1-866-916-5866

Email:    mail@hawthorneheritage.org

From: rwmoore, rwmoore@windstream.net
Date: October 3, 2009
To: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject: Fwd: The True Slavery flag,

Dear Mr. Dewey Barber:

This from R. W.  Moore

************************************************

Begin forwarded message:

From: rwmoore, rwmoore@windstream.net
Date: October 3, 2009
To: jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
Subject: The True Slavery flag,

Dear Ms. Carter:

You are too blinded by your hate to accept the facts that your and all  other school books teach a lie about the war of Northern Aggression, and not the truth.

The True Slavery Flag is the American Flag, the stars and stripes.

Far more years slavery was under the American flag than the Confederate Flag.

A higher percentage of free blacks owned slaves than whites!

Here is proof of that fact.

If your school books would have not lied to our children about the true facts we would not have the problem we have today with the blacks and whites.

Why is that in all the wars we have fought we cannot honor our dead? By the way over,  70.000 blacks fought on the side of the south.

Total deaths was over 660.000 more than all the wars  we have fought together.

sincerely,

R. W.  Moore

**************************************************

DIXIE'S CENSORED SUBJECT - BLACK SLAVEOWNERS

Author: Robert M. Grooms

In an 1856 letter to his wife Mary Custis Lee, Robert E. Lee called slavery "a moral and political evil." Yet he concluded that black slaves were immeasurably better off here than in Africa, morally, socially and physically.

The fact is large numbers of free Negroes owned black slaves; in fact, in numbers disproportionate to their representation in society at large. In 1860 only a small minority of whites owned slaves. According to the U.S. census report for that last year before the Civil War, there were nearly 27 million whites in the country. Some eight million of them lived in the slaveholding states.

The census also determined that there were fewer than 385,000 individuals who owned slaves (1). Even if all slaveholders had been white, that would amount to only 1.4 percent of whites in the country (or 4.8 percent of southern whites owning one or more slaves).

In the rare instances when the ownership of slaves by free Negroes is acknowledged in the history books, justification centers on the claim that black slave masters were simply individuals who purchased the freedom of a spouse or child from a white slaveholder and had been unable to legally manumit them. Although this did indeed happen at times, it is a misrepresentation of the majority of instances, one which is debunked by records of the period on blacks who owned slaves. These include individuals such as Justus Angel and Mistress L. Horry, of Colleton District, South Carolina, who each owned 84 slaves in 1830. In fact, in 1830 a fourth of the free Negro slave masters in South Carolina owned 10 or more slaves; eight owning 30 or more (2).

According to federal census reports, on June 1, 1860 there were nearly 4.5 million Negroes in the United States, with fewer than four million of them living in the southern slaveholding states. Of the blacks residing in the South, 261,988 were not slaves. Of this number, 10,689 lived in New Orleans. The country's leading African American historian, Duke University professor John Hope Franklin, records that in New Orleans over 3,000 free Negroes owned slaves, or 28 percent of the free Negroes in that city.

To return to the census figures quoted above, this 28 percent is certainly impressive when compared to less than 1.4 percent of all American whites and less than 4.8 percent of southern whites. The statistics show that, when free, blacks disproportionately became slave masters.

The majority of slaveholders, white and black, owned only one to five slaves. More often than not, and contrary to a century and a half of bullwhips-on-tortured-backs propaganda, black and white masters worked and ate alongside their charges; be it in house, field or workshop. The few individuals who owned 50 or more slaves were confined to the top one percent, and have been defined as slave magnates.

In 1860 there were at least six Negroes in Louisiana who owned 65 or more slaves The largest number, 152 slaves, were owned by the widow C. Richards and her son P.C. Richards, who owned a large sugar cane plantation. Another Negro slave magnate in Louisiana, with over 100 slaves, was Antoine Dubuclet, a sugar planter whose estate was valued at (in 1860 dollars) $264,000 (3). That year, the mean wealth of southern white men was $3,978 (4).

In Charleston, South Carolina in 1860 125 free Negroes owned slaves; six of them owning 10 or more. Of the $1.5 million in taxable property owned by free Negroes in Charleston, more than $300,000 represented slave holdings (5). In North Carolina 69 free Negroes were slave owners (6).

In 1860 William Ellison was South Carolina's largest Negro slaveowner. In Black Masters. A Free Family of Color in the Old South, authors Michael P. Johnson and James L. Roak write a sympathetic account of Ellison's life. From Ellison's birth as a slave to his death at 71, the authors attempt to provide justification, based on their own speculation, as to why a former slave would become a magnate slave master.

At birth he was given the name April. A common practice among slaves of the period was to name a child after the day or month of his or her birth. Between 1800 and 1802 April was purchased by a white slave-owner named William Ellison. Apprenticed at 12, he was taught the trades of carpentry, blacksmithing and machining, as well as how to read, write, cipher and do basic bookkeeping.

On June 8, 1816, William Ellison appeared before a magistrate (with five local freeholders as supporting witnesses) to gain permission to free April, now 26 years of age. In 1800 the South Carolina legislature had set out in detail the procedures for manumission. To end the practice of freeing unruly slaves of "bad or depraved" character and those who "from age or infirmity" were incapacitated, the state required that an owner testify under oath to the good character of the slave he sought to free. Also required was evidence of the slave's "ability to gain a livelihood in an honest way."

Although lawmakers of the time could not envision the incredibly vast public welfare structures of a later age, these stipulations became law in order to prevent slaveholders from freeing individuals who would become a burden on the general public.

Interestingly, considering today's accounts of life under slavery, authors Johnson and Roak report instances where free Negroes petitioned to be allowed to become slaves; this because they were unable to support themselves.

Black Confederates and Afro-Yankees in Civil War Virginia (University Press of Virginia-1995) was written by Ervin L. Jordan Jr., an African-American and assistant professor and associate curator of the Special Collections Department, University of Virginia library. He wrote: "One of the more curious aspects of the free black existence in Virginia was their ownership of slaves. Black slave masters owned members of their family and freed them in their wills. Free blacks were encouraged to sell themselves into slavery and had the right to choose their owner through a lengthy court procedure."

In 1816, shortly after his manumission, April moved to Stateburg. Initially he hired slave workers from local owners. When in 1817 he built a gin for Judge Thomas Watries, he credited the judge nine dollars "for hire of carpenter George for 12 days." By 1820 he had purchased two adult males to work in his shop (7). In fewer than four years after being freed, April demonstrated that he had no problem perpetuating an institution he had been released from. He also achieved greater monetary success than most white people of the period.

On June 20, 1820, April appeared in the Sumter District courthouse in Sumterville. Described in court papers submitted by his attorney as a "freed yellow man of about 29 years of age," he requested a name change because it "would yet greatly advance his interest as a tradesman." A new name would also "save him and his children from degradation and contempt which the minds of some do and will attach to the name April." Because "of the kindness" of his former master and as a "Mark of gratitude and respect for him" April asked that his name be changed to William Ellison. His request was granted.

In time the black Ellison family joined the predominantly white Episcopalian church. On August 6, 1824 he was allowed to put a family bench on the first floor, among those of the wealthy white families. Other blacks, free and slave, and poor whites sat in the balcony. Another wealthy Negro family would later join the first floor worshippers.

Between 1822 and the mid-1840s, Ellison gradually built a small empire, acquiring slaves in increasing numbers. He became one of South Carolina's major cotton gin manufacturers, selling his machines as far away as Mississippi. From February 1817 until the War Between the States commenced, his business advertisements appeared regularly in newspapers across the state. These included the Camden Gazette, the Sumter Southern Whig and the Black River Watchman.

Ellison was so successful, due to his utilization of cheap slave labor, that many white competitors went out of business. Such situations discredit impressions that whites dealt only with other whites. Where money was involved, it was apparent that neither Ellison's race or former status were considerations.

In his book, Ervin L. Jordan Jr. writes that, as the great conflagration of 1861-1865 approached: "Free Afro-Virginians were a nascent black middle class under siege, but several acquired property before and during the war. Approximately 169 free blacks owned 145,976 acres in the counties of Amelia, Amherst, Isle of Wight, Nansemond, Prince William and Surry, averaging 870 acres each. Twenty-rune Petersburg blacks each owned property worth $1,000 and continued to purchase more despite the war."

Jordan offers an example: "Gilbert Hunt, a Richmond ex-slave blacksmith, owned two slaves, a house valued at $1,376, and $500 in other properties at his death in 1863." Jordan wrote that "some free black residents of Hampton and Norfolk owned property of considerable value; 17 black Hamptonians possessed property worth a total of $15,000. Thirty-six black men paid taxes as heads of families in Elizabeth City County and were employed as blacksmiths, bricklayers, fishermen, oystermen and day laborers. In three Norfolk County parishes 160 blacks owned a total of $41,158 in real estate and personal property.

The general practice of the period was that plantation owners would buy seed and equip~ ment on credit and settle their outstanding accounts when the annual cotton crop was sold. Ellison, like all free Negroes, could resort to the courts for enforcement of the terms of contract agreements. Several times Ellison successfully sued white men for money owed him.

In 1838 Ellison purchased on time 54.5 acres adjoining his original acreage from one Stephen D. Miller. He moved into a large home on the property. What made the acquisition notable was that Miller had served in the South Carolina legislature, both in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, and while a resident of Stateburg had been governor of the state. Ellison's next door neighbor was Dr. W.W. Anderson, master of "Borough House, a magnificent 18th Century mansion. Anderson's son would win fame in the War Between the States as General "Fighting Dick" Anderson.

By 1847 Ellison owned over 350 acres, and more than 900 by 1860. He raised mostly cotton, with a small acreage set aside for cultivating foodstuffs to feed his family and slaves. In 1840 he owned 30 slaves, and by 1860 he owned 63. His sons, who lived in homes on the property, owned an additional nine slaves. They were trained as gin makers by their father (8). They had spent time in Canada, where many wealthy American Negroes of the period sent their children for advanced formal education. Ellison's sons and daughters married mulattos from Charleston, bringing them to the Ellison plantation to live.

In 1860 Ellison greatly underestimated his worth to tax assessors at $65,000. Even using this falsely stated figure, this man who had been a slave 44 years earlier had achieved great financial success. His wealth outdistanced 90 percent of his white neighbors in Sumter District. In the entire state, only five percent owned as much real estate as Ellison. His wealth was 15 times greater than that of the state's average for whites. And Ellison owned more slaves than 99 percent of the South's slaveholders.

Although a successful businessman and cotton farmer, Ellison's major source of income derived from being a "slave breeder." Slave breeding was looked upon with disgust throughout the South, and the laws of most southern states forbade the sale of slaves under the age of 12. In several states it was illegal to sell inherited slaves (9). Nevertheless, in 1840 Ellison secretly began slave breeding.

While there was subsequent investment return in raising and keeping young males, females were not productive workers in his factory or his cotton fields. As a result, except for a few females he raised to become "breeders," Ellison sold the female and many of the male children born to his female slaves at an average price of $400. Ellison had a reputation as a harsh master. His slaves were said to be the district's worst fed and clothed. On his property was located a small, windowless building where he would chain his problem slaves.

As with the slaves of his white counterparts, occasionally Ellison's slaves ran away. The historians of Sumter District reported that from time to time Ellison advertised for the return of his runaways. On at least one occasion Ellison hired the services of a slave catcher. According to an account by Robert N. Andrews, a white man who had purchased a small hotel in Stateburg in the 1820s, Ellison hired him to run down "a valuable slave. Andrews caught the slave in Belleville, Virginia. He stated: "I was paid on returning home $77.50 and $74 for expenses.

William Ellison died December 5, 1861. His will stated that his estate should pass into the joint hands of his free daughter and his two surviving sons. He bequeathed $500 to the slave daughter he had sold.

Following in their father's footsteps, the Ellison family actively supported the Confederacy throughout the war. They converted nearly their entire plantation to the production of corn, fodder, bacon, corn shucks and cotton for the Confederate armies. They paid $5,000 in taxes during the war. They also invested more than $9,000 in Confederate bonds, treasury notes and certificates in addition to the Confederate currency they held. At the end, all this valuable paper became worthless.

The younger Ellisons contributed more than farm produce, labor and money to the Confederate cause. On March 27, 1863 John Wilson Buckner, William Ellison's oldest grandson, enlisted in the 1st South Carolina Artillery. Buckner served in the company of Captains P.P. Galliard and A.H. Boykin, local white men who knew that Buckner was a Negro. Although it was illegal at the time for a Negro to formally join the Confederate forces, the Ellison family's prestige nullified the law in the minds of Buckner's comrades. Buckner was wounded in action on July 12, 1863. At his funeral in Stateburg in August, 1895 he was praised by his former Confederate officers as being a "faithful soldier."

Following the war the Ellison family fortune quickly dwindled. But many former Negro slave magnates quickly took advantage of circumstances and benefited by virtue of their race. For example Antoine Dubuclet, the previously mentioned New Orleans plantation owner who held more than 100 slaves, became Louisiana state treasurer during Reconstruction, a post he held from 1868 to 1877 (10).

A truer picture of the Old South, one never presented by the nation's mind molders, emerges from this account. The American South had been undergoing structural evolutionary changes far, far greater than generations of Americans have been led to believe. In time, within a relatively short time, the obsolete and economically nonviable institution of slavery would have disappeared. The nation would have been spared awesome traumas from which it would never fully recover.

NOTES

1. The American Negro, Raymond Logan and Irving Cohen New York: Houghton and Mifflin, 1970), p.72.

2. Black Masters. A Family of Color in the Old South, Michael P. Johnson and James L. Roak New York: Norton, 1984), p.64.

3. The Forgotten People, Gary Mills (Baton Rouge, 1977); Black Masters, p.128.

4. Men and Wealth in the US., 1850-1870, Lee Soltow (New Haven, 1975), p.85.

5. Black Masters, Appendix, Table 7; p.280.

6. Black Masters, p. 62.

7. Information on the Ellison family was obtained from Black Masters; the number of slaves they owned was gained from U.S. Census Reports.

8. In 1860 South Carolina had only 21 gin makers; Ellison, his three sons and a grandson account for five of the total.

9. Neither Black Nor White: Slaveiy and Race Relations in Brazil and the United States, Carl N. Degler (New York, Macmillan, 1971), p.39; Negro Slavery in Louisiana, Joe Gray Taylor (Baton Rouge, 1963), pp. 4041.

10. Reconstruction, 1863-1877, Eric Foner (New York; Harper & Row, 1988), p. 47; pp. 353-355.

Originally Published at: http://americancivilwar.com/authors/black_slaveowners.htm

copyright © 1997, Robert M. Grooms

 

Veita Jackson-Carter - For The Record

According to the record Veita Jackson Carter was appointed Principal of Mebane Middle School in 2007. She served in that capacity until 2009.



Mebane Middle School Rating Drops

The biggest drop in school ratings of any school in the Crescent Communities came at Mebane Middle School during Mrs. Carter’s Administration. There the school went from an “A” rating to a “C” rating.

To quote Shane Andrew, the new Principal at Mebane in 2009-2010; "We got a “C” last year. "I'd say it's the first C we've had in 10 years."



Parents are Dissatisfied

During her tenure at Mebane there was much controversy and upheaval. Many parents and students were concerned and dissatisfied with Mrs. Carter and her ability to administer her staff and give their child a quality education.

These from GreatSchools.net

A.L. Mebane Middle School has an average Parent Rating of 3 out of 5 stars, based on reviews from 14 parents.

This is a grade of 60 and is a failing grade for Veita Jackson Carter.






GreatSchools.net Rating Under the Tenure of Veita Jackson Carter

A. L. Mebane Middle School, located in Alachua, Florida, serves grades 6-8 in the Alachua County Public Schools district. Based on its state test results, it has received a GreatSchools Rating of 4 out of 10.

Below is a list of the public schools closest to Mebane Middle School sorted by GreatSchools.net rating. Note that Mebane Middle school is at the bottom of the list of public schools during the tenure of Veita Jackson Carter
 

The responsibility of a principal is to educate her students. It is clear that Mrs. Carter is a failure in this regard.

If a student scores 4 out of a possible 10 his grade is “40”. This is a failing grade. Veita Jackson Carter has failed to teach her students properly.





FCAT Test Scores For 2009

Following are FCAT test scores for 2009, the last year of Veita Jackson Carter’s Tenure at Mebane

Scale: % scoring at or above grade level

Grade 6

Reading
 53% (2009)
The state average for Reading was 66% in 2009.

Math
 38% (2009)
The state average for Math was 55% in 2009.

Grade 7

Reading
 63% (2009)
The state average for Reading was 67% in 2009.

Math
 58% (2009)
The state average for Math was 60% in 20

Grade 8

Reading
 42% (2009)
The state average for Reading was 54% in 2009.

Science
 34% (2009)
The state average for Science was 41% in 2009.

Math
 58% (2009)
The state average for Math was 66% in 2009.

FCAT test scores were below the Florida state average at Mebane in all grades and in all subjects under Veita Jackson Carter's Administration.



Summary

For the Record, the facts and data speak for themselves.

During Veita Jackson Carter’s Adminstration:

1  Mebane Middle School rating dropped to its lowest level in ten years from an “A” to  a “C”.  It was at the bottom of the list of nearby public schools.

2. Mebane parents were dissatisfied. A parent rating of 3 out of a possible 5 is a score of 60%; a failing grade.

3. FCAT test scores were below the Florida state average at Mebane in all grades and in all subjects
 

H.K. Edgerton to speak at Principal Carter’s Forum on Sept. 14, 2009
September 4, 2009

H.K. Edgerton, the famous black confederate activist, who once marched over 1,300 miles from Asheville N.C. to Austin, Tx. carrying the Confederate Battle Flag will speak to students at Hawthorne High School on Sept.14, 2009. According to Principal Carter, Mr. Edgerton, founder and President of Southern Heritage 411 Inc. (www.southernheritage411.com) will speak at 8:30 am. in the auditorium to the middle school students and immediately afterwards will speak to the high school students concerning the flag.

Mr. Edgerton is noted for his commitment to the memory of the black confederate soldier and his belief that black folks and white folks share a common Southern heritage. He believes that the Confederate battle flag is the premier symbol of the South and represents the brotherhood that black and white people shared during the invasion by the Union soldiers in the War for Southern Independence.
 

What you can do to stop your school from banning symbols of Southern Heritage.

Step 1.

Click on this link, An Open Letter to Schools, and print the letter entitled "An open letter to schools considering banning Dixie Outfitters shirts" along with the "Dixie Outfitters' Mission Statement" and submit them to your school principal or administrator. Also download and print these newspaper articles on recent lawsuits brought by students against the school for banning the Confederate Battle Flag:

Castorina v. Madison County School Board

Bragg v Swanson

Shingler v. Seminole County School District - Article
Shingler v. Seminole County School District - Court Ruling (PDF Document. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to read this file. If you do not have this, you can download a free copy by going HERE.

Ask for his/her consideration of these documents in his/her decision regarding banning of Confederate symbols.

Step 2.

If your school official does not rescind the banning policy then you may organize a petition signing and/or speak to the school board. Click here  for a form named "Petition" for you to use or to use as a guide.

Secure as many names as possible, complete with addresses and phone numbers. Encourage the petition signers to call their principal or school board members and express their displeasure at being denied their freedom of expression, as provided by the United States Constitution.

Contact your school board and request a time to speak at the next school board meeting. Contact all the people who signed the petition and tell them of the date and time of the school board meeting and ask them to come in support of the petition. Ask them to wear their Southern Heritage clothing. If the petition and calls to the school board do not change the policy, the next option is to sue the school board.

Step 3.

Contact these organizations for assistance with your suit against the school board:

A. - Go to the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) web site at www.aclu.org. Look on the bottom left for the nearest ACLU office nearest you and contact them about your problem.

Go to www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeechMain.cfm and read about your rights to freedom of speech.

Go to www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeechlist.cfm?c=87 and read about some First Amendment victories by the ACLU.

Go to www.aclu.org/StudentsRights/StudentsRights.cfm?ID=13149&c=159 and learn more your First Amendment rights as a student.

B. - Contact your local Sons of Confederate Veterans heritage defense officer for help. Contact information is at www.scv.org/heritageChairmen.php.

C. - Contact a local lawyer of your choice or contact Kirk Lyons of the Southern Legal Resource Center. The SLRC contact information is as follows:

Phone: 1-800-370-3617, 1-828-669-5189
Website: www.slrc-csa.org
E-mail: slrc@slrc-csa.org

Mailing Address:
SLRC
PO Box 1235
Black Mountain, NC 28711

Suggestions for resolving a school ban on Confederate symbols in your community.
By Kirk D. Lyons
Article

To report a heritage violation contact the SLRC case manager at 1-864-476-0656 and email at slrc@crystalink.com. The SLRC is a group of Southern lawyers specializing in Southern Heritage offenses. They may take your case at little or no cost to you.

D. - Click the links below for information on other organizations that you may contact to help you protect your freedom of expression.

First Amendment Lawyers Association
Free Expression Network
Free Expression Policy Project
Freedom Forum
National Coalition Against Censorship
Thomas Jefferson Center For The Protection Of Free Expression

We at Dixie Outfitters know that most Southern people are "live and let live people" with a high tolerance level and a firm belief that all should enjoy the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. We are not racist and do not hate people because of their color, but we cannot continue to allow the NAACP and the liberals to keep on destroying all vestiges of our Southern Heritage.

We have a right to be proud of our ancestors who gave their lives for their Southern homeland. We have a right to be proud of our Southern traditions and culture. The Confederate battle flag is a symbol of this heritage and culture. We have a right to be proud of this symbol. We must take a stand. We must continue the fight to save our Southern Heritage. I urge you to take all actions necessary to preserve our Southern culture.

Our ancestors were brave. They gave their lives for what they believed. Let us now summon the courage to start a petition drive or sign a petition or carry a flag and support our children and their legitimate Constitutional rights.

Best regards,

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

School Protest Shirts

Dixie Outfitters supports all students who wish to show their pride in their Southern Heritage by wearing shirts to school that feature the Confederate Battle Flag.

We believe that banning of the Confederate Battle Flag by public schools is a violation of students right to freedom of speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Further, these unconstitutional bans discriminate against persons of Southern heritage and are an insult to those who have Confederate ancestors. Such discrimination is a violation of the Civil Rights act of 1964.

These bans perpetuate ignorance and misunderstanding about the true history of the Confederacy and the Confederate Battle Flag. It is the mandate of public schools to educate its students in true history. The Confederate Battle flag is a historical flag of the Southern soldier who fought for the principles espoused by the founding fathers of the United States. Historical facts, not politically correct positions, should be taught by our schools.

It is not the mandate of our public schools to deny its students of the fundamental freedoms enjoyed by American citizens. It is not the mandate of our schools to deny Southern students symbols of their heritage while allowing other ethnicities their symbols of heritage. Public school students who are denied their freedom to express themselves should protest this injustice.

Dixie Outfitters new series of shirts called " Public School Protest Shirts" are designed to help students who feel abused and discriminated against because of their Southern heritage. These shirts do not contain the Confederate Battle Flag, but they do effectively communicate your feelings regarding the trampling of your rights.

We encourage you to make your feelings known to your school through these shirts. We offer them at a special price of $5.00 each.

CLICK HERE to view this special collection and to order!

Suggestions to Parents and Students for Resolving a School Ban on Confederate symbols in your Community.

By Kirk D. Lyons

Chief Trial Counsel

Southern Legal Resource Center

P.O.Box 1235

Black Mountain, NC  28711

828-669-5189

slrc@slrc-csa.org

www.slrc-csa.org

1. Obtain copy of the School or Board of Education’s Dress code. Send to your attorney and to SLRC (fax No 828-669-5191 or P.O.Box 1235 Black Mountain, NC 28711)

2. Have all students affected by the ban & their parents contact the SLRC case manager 864-476-0656 slrc@crystalink.com and give a fact statement with the following info:
   1. Student’s name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, Social Security number, grade in school
   2. Name and address of school, name of Principal and any involved teachers or administrators
   3. Name of School System involved, County & State where this violation takes place, name,  address and phone number (and email) of Superintendent and all members of the Board of Education.
   4. Facts regarding any race related problems at school, esp those involving Confederate symbols.
   5. Statements regarding Confederate clothing, symbols or history (pro or con) made by the Principal, teachers or other students especially as they relate to the ban on Confederate clothing and especially ignorant and bigoted statements.
   6. Relate all facts and conversations regarding any request by teacher or administrator for a student to remove Confederate clothing or symbol
   7. Make notes of clothing and symbols worn and displayed by other students in the school that are NOT punished by school officials for so doing. This can include offensive dress styles, obscene t-shirts, drug symbols, FUBU clothing, “ Malcom X” clothing. Specifically note all other heritage symbols that are allowed to be worn to school, like Mexican flags, Irish flags. Note other religious symbols allowed: crucifixes, Stars of David, Muslim Crescents, etc.
   8. Note any discipline problems the student has been involved in.

3. Contact the local Sons of Confederate Veterans and request their assistance. All male students and their Father’s that are eligible should join. Female students can join the Children of the Confederacy, the United Daughters of the Confederacy or the Order of Confederate Rose.  The Sons should be willing to provide continuing historical education for all students involved and help them to find a Confederate ancestor. Educating the students to their ancestry and Confederate history is an important step in the process.  We need educated students who can rationally and intelligently explain to a School board or jury WHY Confederate heritage is important to them.
   1. The students should be given the background of War Between the States history
   2. If the student is a Christian, the student should be told the Christian symbolism of the Confederate flag
   3. The student should be made aware that the Confederate flag is a symbol of his ancestry
   4. The Student should be assisted in find his/her Confederate ancestor
   5. The Student should determine if he/she is a Confederate Southern American
4. Explain the legal background to the students and parents.  This may be done by going to the SLRC website: www.slrc-csa.org and looking under  “Southern Civil Rights Advice,” “Case Law” and “ Legal Research.”
   1. The student should understand that he/she has a limited 1st Amendment Right to display Confederate symbols.
   2. That a ban on Confederate symbols may also be a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, being discrimination based on Race, Religion (the Confederate flag being a Christian symbol) and National Origin.

5. If a student is told to remove or change the shirt – they should comply.  Defiance will create a discipline problem and flag supporters will not win if it is a discipline issue.  We must keep it a free speech issue. At the same time the student needs to send a message to the school that his rights are being violated. A protest t-shirt might be an option. Dixie outfitters and SLRC sells one (Jesus and the Confederate Battle flag: Banned from our Schools, But Forever in Our Hearts) or the student can devise his own by covering the Confederate flag with a black patch and writing “CENSORED” over the patch.

6. Parent, student & adult witness should meet the principal in his office and bring (not wear) the offending t-shirt.  The parent then tells the Principal that his child has parental permission to wear the offending shirt and permission is hereby requested from the principal for the student to wear the shirt.  When the principal refuses, the parent should have the principal state why the student cannot wear the shirt. Make a written record of the Principals statement. 

7. If the Principal will not change his position, the parent should have an attorney (or SLRC, ACLU etc) send a letter to the Principal (copy to Superintendent and Board of Education) the letter should state:

1. That the actions of the Principal, implementing the policies of the Board of Education violate your child’s Constitutional rights and are a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, being discrimination based on Race, Religion and National Origin (include if the facts so warrant).
2. That the Confederate Flag is a venerated symbol of your child’s ancestry and you request that the principal accommodate your child in the honorable display of his/her heritage. (include if the facts warrant)
3. That the Confederate Flag is a venerated symbol of your child’s Christian religious faith and you request that the principal accommodate your child in the practice of his beliefs. (include if the facts warrant)

8. If the Principal still refuses, you must now take your fight to the Board of Education.  Principals do not make school policy. They implement and administer policies set by the Board of Education. What you are contesting is the Board of Education policy (or interpretation of policy)  that bans Confederate symbols. Now is the time to get to know your school trustees. Again, what you must attack is the Board of Education’s policy banning Confederate flags.  Most Boards do not specifically ban Confederate flags in their dress code.  If the Principal is acting unreasonably, if there is no disruption (or the disruption is caused by the actions of the school) then if the Board of Education “circles the wagons around him” simply because they want no diminution of his authority, then their unwillingness to correct him may be a policy decision that has the effect of illegally banning Confederate symbols. It is the policy you must change. “Rogue” actions of a principal do not usually constitute policy that can be imputed to the Board of Education. In any case the Board of Education must have knowledge of his actions so that they will have the opportunity to correct and override him.

9. Form a parent and student group to be your political arm.  Give it a name like Smith County Heritage Coalition or Concerned Citizens (or Parents) of Smith County Schools. It should be LOCAL, made up of local people.  ANYONE in your County interested in helping should be invited to join.  Local SCV and heritage groups should be encouraged to join in their private capacity (SCV is non-political). 
   1. Elect Chairman/Spokesman
   2. Conduct community or County-wide Petition drive.  There should be two petitions.  One for Students and non-voters. The Second one is ONLY for registered voters in the county. Make your petition legible and make sure there is plenty of room to write, I recommend that there only be 4 or 5 names to the page.  Include signature, printed name, address, phone number and EMAIL.
   3. Never give up a petition to the school board.  Brandish it at them, tell them how many signatures you have, but you keep it.  From it create a database for keeping the community informed, gaining members and raising a war chest (you’ll need it).
   4. Form website
   5. Get on Community access cable TV
   6. Put out regular Pres releases and coordinate this with the SCV and other heritage groups.
   7. Avoid extremist groups like the plague
   8. Stay in touch with members of the Board of Education.  Find out when the next election is.  Find out who is running against them and solicit their support if the incumbent opposes you.  Run for the office yourself if necessary.  Use the Association to find candidates to run for office.
   9. Seek allies.

10. Get on Agenda for meeting of the Board of Education.  Let your attorney coordinate. Carefully pick your speakers and have them prepare their remarks, you will probably get no more than 3 minutes per person.  Call out the troops to pack the meeting.   Only well-dressed attendees inside the meeting.  Protesters and casually dressed people, outside.
11. If the School Board refuses to change their policy, and you still seek redress, you must now prepare to file a lawsuit. If you have not yet obtained legal counsel, do so!
    
     

Schools Ban Confederate T-Shirts

Shingler v. Seminole County Sch. Dist., No. 6:01-CV-36-WLS (N.D. Ga. 2001)

The Seminole County Board of Education banned the wearing of t-shirts displaying the confederate flag or any "reference to race" even though there have never been any incidents of student unrest due to t-shirts. The ACLU filed suit on behalf of nine students who had been sent home and forced to remove a t-shirt or be disciplined. The court denied a request for preliminary injunction, but affirmed the students' right to engage in silent, passive expression of their opinions by wearing the t-shirts. The parties engaged in discovery and then reached an agreement by which Defendants rescinded the blanket ban on confederate flag shirts; revised and clarified the dress code in order to protect the free expression of students; provided freedom from dress code restrictions for extra-curricular events; created clear procedures for appeal of dress code discipline; and agreed to provide training to teachers and administrators.(William Shingler/Gerry Weber/Robert Tsai)

By David L. Hudson Jr.
First Amendment Center research attorney
06.09.05

A West Virginia high school student had a First Amendment right to wear Confederate flag clothing to school, a federal judge recently ruled.

Noting a “sea of interpretations about what the flag represents,” the judge reasoned that “there are a variety of innocent flag uses that would be silenced by the broadly worded policy” of Putnam County's Hurricane High School.

Franklin Bragg sued school officials after he was punished for wearing a “Dixie Outfitters” T-shirt and a belt buckle, both of which bore the flag’s image. School policy prohibited “racist language and/or symbols or graphics,” specifically including “the Rebel flag, which has been used as a symbol of racism at high schools in Putnam County.”

Bragg enlisted the help of the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia, which filed a federal lawsuit on his behalf in April 2005. On May 31, U.S. District Judge John T. Copenhaver Jr. ruled in a memorandum opinion and order in Bragg v. Swanson that Principal Joyce Vessey Swanson had violated Bragg’s First Amendment rights.

Swanson instituted the ban because she said she had had several negative experiences with the flag at other schools in the county. However, Copenhaver ruled Swanson had not shown much evidence of racial tension associated with the flag.

Copenhaver reasoned that the applicable legal standard for resolution of the case was Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School Dist., the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1969 decision upholding the right of several students to wear black armbands to school protesting U.S. involvement in Vietnam. The Court established the so-called Tinker standard, which holds that school officials can censor student expression if they can reasonably forecast that the expression will create a substantial disruption or material interference with school activities or will invade the rights of others. The Court in Tinker warned that school officials could not censor student expression based on “undifferentiated fear or apprehension of disturbance.”

Some courts have given school officials greater leeway to regulate the Confederate flag under a standard from the Supreme Court’s 1986 decision Bethel School District No. 403 v. Fraser, which established that school officials can prohibit student expression that is “vulgar, lewd or plainly offensive.”

However, Copenhaver refused to apply the Fraser standard, writing that “the display of the flag is not per se and patently offensive.”

Applying Tinker, Copenhaver said the principal did not have enough evidence to reasonably forecast that the flag would create a substantial disruption of school activities. Copenhaver said “the principal acted with ‘a remote apprehension of disturbance’ rather than a ‘specific and significant fear of disruption.’”

“Although the best of intentions undergird the policy, the offending portion unjustifiably silenced a significant amount of permissible speech in contravention of the First Amendment,” Copenhaver wrote.

He credited the testimony of Bragg’s friend, Lisa Adkins, an African-American student who said Bragg’s clothing did not bother her or other African-American students at Hurricane. The judge wrote that Adkins’ testimony showed that “there exists at the school an environment in which people of both races mix freely together and form good relationships.”

The judge also said it was problematic that school officials singled out the Confederate flag but allowed students to wear Malcolm X T-shirts.

However, he cautioned that his ruling in Bragg’s favor should not give anyone license to intimidate others with Confederate flag clothing: “This opinion should not be interpreted as offering a safe haven for those bent on using the flag in school as a tool for disruption, intimidation, or trampling upon the rights of others. Should that occur, or be reasonably forecast by the school, the very ban struck down today might be entirely appropriate.”

The West Virginia ACLU applauded the judge’s ruling. “The court recognized that allowing some expressions of political speech by students while banning others is a flagrant violation of the First Amendment,” said Executive Director Andrew Schneider in a news release. “We hope that the school will use this as an opportunity to teach students about their constitutional rights and encourage debate over future controversial subjects before resorting to censorship.”

Charleston, W.Va.-based attorney Greg Bailey, who represented the school board and the principal, said: “No decision has been made on whether to appeal. It is still under consideration. The superintendent plans to discuss it with the school board in the near future to decide what action to take.”

NOTE: If you would like to contact Franklin Bragg regarding his experiences, you can send him an email at cowboy_f150@yahoo.com.

CLICK HERE to view the judge's final order on Bragg vs Swanson. NOTE: You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer to view this file. If you don't already have it, it is available FREE by clicking on the link below.

Download Adobe Acrobat Reader.

On The Web: http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=15405

Castorina v. Madison County School Board

Bragg v Swanson

Shingler v. Seminole County School District - Article

     We at Dixie Outfitters have been contacted by many students and parents advising us of the banning and/or considered banning of shirts featuring the Confederate Flag and in particular Dixie Outfitters brand shirts at their school.

     School Boards and Principals please be advised that there are currently over 36 lawsuits filed upon school boards for banning confederate flag clothing. Your actions to ban Southern Heritage from your schools put you at risk of similar lawsuits.

     We have responded to students/parents requests by putting them in touch with several organizations. The Southern Legal Resource Center (www.slrc-csa.org), Black Mountain, N.C., and the Sons of Confederate Veterans (www.scv.org) specialize in cases of discrimination against Confederate Americans under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The American Civil Liberties Union (www.aclu.org), and the First Amendment Lawyers Association (www.firstamendmentlawyers.org) specialize in cases involving freedom of speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution. We are also advising them to stand up for their rights and to fight back at school attempts to deny them of their rights and freedoms.

     We understand that your intentions to prohibit the Confederate Flag from being worn at your schools may be to prevent controversy or incidents involving racial issues. There are other remedies available to prevent such incidents or controversy and we respectfully disagree with denying your students their rights as guaranteed by law.

     The demonization of the meaning of Confederate flag by special interest groups such as the NAACP and the KKK have little or nothing to do with the real history of the flag. The real truth is that 260,000 Southern men and women died for this flag. The real truth is that the War for Southern Independence had little or nothing to do with slavery or racism.

     It is the responsibility of our schools to educate its students about the true history of the War for Southern Independence and the Confederate Flag and not to succumb to those who make trouble because they are uneducated about the facts. Schools should not punish the innocent for being proud of their heritage while upholding ignorance, misinformation and unruliness caused by propaganda disseminated by radical special interest groups for their own purposes.

     We hope that your school will reconsider your current policy in regard to the Confederate Flag and allow your students the rights and freedoms enjoyed by all other Americans.

Best Regards,
Dewey Barber
Dixie Outfitters

DAVID & MARGARET WRIGHT
274 Cope Road
Andrews, NC 28901
(828) 321-5921

April 7, 2004
Dr. Janette Hedrick
Superintendent
Cherokee County Board of Education
911 Andrews Road
Murphy, NC 28906

Re: William David “Will” Wright and incident at March 27, 2004 Junior Prom

Dear Dr. Hedrick:

We hereby waive our son’s right to a closed session consideration by the Cherokee County Board of Education of the above referenced incident. It is our desire that this matter be freely discussed before the other citizens of Cherokee County.

Please regard this letter as an official request to the Cherokee County Board of Education to disavow the actions of Andrews High School Principal Mike Rogers in ordering our son, William David Wright, to remove his Confederate theme tuxedo jacket at the March 27, 2004 Andrews High School Junior Prom. This letter is also to insist on an apology from Mr. Rogers.

It is our understanding that the Cherokee County Board of Education is considering a policy ban on Confederate symbols for all Cherokee County Schools. We vigorously oppose this action and assert that further study on this issue is necessary before an intelligent vote by the board can be made. Attached to this letter is a copy of a publication of the North Carolina Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, The Guide to Confederate Issues in North Carolina, an excellent publication that could be used as part of an educational seminar for those persons who don’t realize that many good and decent people legitimately revere the Confederate or Rebel flag, its cause and their ancestors who fought under it.

The following is submitted and is intended to put you, Mr. Rogers and the Cherokee County Board of Education on notice of the following:

1. Our son has a First Amendment right to wear his Confederate shirts, subject to the 1969 Supreme Court decision in Tinker. The case dealt with students wearing black armbands protesting the Vietnam War. Their conduct was within the protection of the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth.

2. Our son has a constitutional right under the 9th Amendment to his heritage: “The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”

3. Our son is a Confederate Southern-American as are we. This is a minority group just like Blacks, Hispanics, Indians, etc. The Confederate Battle flag is a venerated symbol of our son’s ancestry. North Carolina was a Confederate State and that is an undeniable part of our State’s history and heritage. The Confederate Battle flag qualifies as a venerated object under North Carolina law.

4. The Confederate Battle flag is a venerated symbol of our sons’ Christian religious faith. The Confederate Battle flag is emblazoned with the cross of St. Andrew, one of Christ’s disciples and the patron saint of Scotland. Andrew was crucified on an “X” shaped cross. The “X” cross also is the Greek letter “Chi” which stood for “Christos,” or “Christ,” the same way we use “Xmas” as an abbreviation for Christmas. When my son sees a Confederate flag, he sees a venerated symbol of his Christian religious faith. Other students are allowed to display emblems of their faith and have not been told to stop doing so. This is our specific request that you accommodate our son in his religious beliefs by allowing him to display the Confederate flag (always in an inoffensive manner), as is his right.

5. Lastly, your ban on Confederate symbols re-enforces the prejudices of those few in our community hostile to confederate symbols. Some students, teachers and parents, in their ignorance, may associate the Confederate Battle flag with the Klan and white supremacy. Your banning of Confederate symbols would underwrite those beliefs and potentially stigmatize our son as a racist.

Our son has an inalienable right to his southern heritage-that a public school should not be able to squash his individuality.

We are coming before this board as concerned parents. We feel strongly about this or we would not be here. We have made a sincere good faith effort to resolve this matter before appearing at your meeting. First we attempted to get in touch with Mr. West and he was out of town. We contacted Dr. Ackerman and he said he didn’t want to know any details in case it came before the board. He suggested we go back to Mr. Rogers and attempt to handle it there. We told him it would probably not do any good and we didn’t feel comfortable doing that. He then said our next step was to talk to the Superintendent Dr. Hedrick, who also suggested we go to Mr. Rogers. We did as Dr. Hedrick requested meeting with not only with Mr. Rogers the principal, but Jeana Hardin, the assistant principal as well. We honestly feel all anyone wants me to do is to drop the issue and pretend it didn’t happen. Normally that is just what we would have done, but this is not about us, it is about our child as well as the environments surrounding Andrews High School in general and the rights of all students.

If we don’t stand up for our son, especially when he has done nothing wrong, then we don’t count much as parents, people or members of our community.

We are very proud of our son, and thankful that God spared his life in what could have been a tragic school accident last November during a Veteran’s Day Program.

We were so grateful God worked a miracle in his life. We don’t think God spared Wills’ life only to be turned away at the door of his Junior Prom. The alternative to what could have happen is beyond comprehension. I also want to say at this point that we am proud to be able to come to you tonight on behalf of our son, because he could have easily never have attended the prom. Students are told to think outside of the box. Our son did think for himself and came up with the idea of a “Rebel Flag” tuxedo. It was designed by his 15-year old sister, which in itself says a lot and made with loving hands by his grandmother. After completion of the tux, Will tried on his outfit all together. His sister, Cecile, looked at him and said, “Will you look awesome. That is so you.” They both looked at their Granny and said, “You’ve done well.” There is no one in this room that knows any student who would even consider wearing a handmade outfit, especially to the prom. We are told to get students to “think outside of the box.” This young man and woman did. It was an original creation that has never been seen by anyone in the United States or the world. What if someone had stopped Betsy Ross form making the America Flag, Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers or any other Great inventor where would we be today? This was an opportunity for his classmates to see something that had never been seen before. We both approved of our sons attire for the prom. It was suitable for the occasion and in good taste.

Upon arriving at the prom our son was giving his tickets at the door, the principal was motioning for him, before he even could get in and before he could get his date in. She was left behind, because Mr. Rogers wanted to speak to him immediately. Mr. Rogers told him he would have to remove his coat because it might be offensive to someone there. Our son did remove the jacket upon request and acted at all times like the gentleman he is. There were many things at or about the prom itself that could be considered offensive to some, yet our son was the only student singled out for such treatment. Will was embarrassed and humiliated for displaying pride in his ancestry. Mr. Rogers promoted the idea of racism when he banned Will from wearing the Rebel Flag tuxedo. He planted in the mind of his fellow classmates that something was “wrong” with it, when he asked him to remove it. There was no disruption, there was no hint of disruption. Mr. Rogers was the disruption. And he should apologize.

What is heartbreaking about all of this is that school officials did not let it die Saturday night at the prom. Mr. Rogers came in Monday morning at Andrews High School and asked one female student to change her shirt due to the Confederate flag and another young man’s hat was taken. The students were confused because Confederate symbols in Andrews High School has never been a problem. Why did the administrators of Andrews High School create a problem when one didn’t exist? Maybe it was to cover up after the decision Saturday night at the prom. Whatever the reason, it was wrong. Conflict and confusion has been started when it could have been avoided. The students of Andrews High School are upset and want banning Confederate symbols to stop. When you ban one favored symbol, but not all, you don’t decrease racial tension, you increase it.

Further, we are offended by students wearing the following shirts to school: “I have an attitude, what about it”, or “Ride it like you stole it”, “No fear shirts”, “Bad attitude is cool”, “If you had it last night, Smile,’ “Pitch a tent, take a girl and you got it made,” etc. But no one in the Cherokee County School system seems to care if we are offended or not.

We would also like to make it clear that we did not contact the press. When they contacted us, we allowed Will to respond. We did however contact a Black Confederate activist, H. K. Edgerton of the Southern Legal Resource Center, who promised to send a letter to Dr. Hedrick. The only reason Mr. Edgerton will not be present at the April 9th Board meeting is that he is marching 260 miles from Marion, North Carolina to Charleston, South Carolina to honor the crew of the CSS Hunley. He would like to work with you to educate those who may be intolerant of Confederate symbols. As he says: “EDUCATION IS THE KEY!”

Our son has done nothing wrong!! We are proud of him, we are proud of his stand and we are willing to “put it on the line” on behalf of our son. This issue will not go away by banning the Confederate flag. This is a moral issue for our family: an issue of simple right and wrong.

We don’t know where y’all are from originally. But now you live in the South, in a former confederate state and in a community where the majority of citizens have Confederate ancestry. Ethnic cleansing stinks just as bad in Andrews as it does in the Balkans.

Mr. Rogers needs to apologize to our son, and y’all really need to consider all sides of this issue before you trample on the dearest rights of ALL Cherokee County students!

Respectfully submitted,

David Keith Wright Margaret Warren Wright
Parents of William David Wright

Cc: Chairman Mary Ruth Keller
Members of the Cherokee County Board of Education

April 8, 2004

Dr. Jeanette F. Hedrick
Superintendent
Cherokee County Schools
911 Andrews Road
Murphy, North Carolina 28906

By facsimile: (828) 837-5799

Dear Dr. Hedrick:

The Southern Legal Resource Center (SLRC) has been contacted with respect to several recent incidents at Andrews High School regarding students who were ordered to remove articles of Confederate clothing or face disciplinary action. We understand that a male student attending the school’s prom was made to remove a Confederate flag design tuxedo jacket; a female student was ordered to turn a Confederate-theme t-shirt inside out; and another male student had a Confederate-theme hat confiscated. We further understand that there will be a called meeting of the school board tonight, April 9, for the purpose of considering a county-wide ban on all Confederate symbols in the schools.

Dr. Hedrick, the SLRC is a non-profit legal foundation that provides advocacy for individuals whose rights have been violated in connection with expressing pride in their Southern/Confederate heritage. As such we are able to point out that the high school’s actions against the students in question may constitute very real and very flagrant abridgements of their constitutional and civil rights. The students and their parents are aware of this. They are also aware that recent Federal court decisions in this and other circuits have set precedents that frankly would give them a very good chance of prevailing if they should decide to litigate against the school system. One such case, dealing specifically with Confederate clothing, is a 6th Circuit decision, Castorina v. Madison County School Board (2001). A more recent decision, Newsom v. Albemarle County School Board, et al (2003), has expanded student free speech in this very circuit. Needless to say, however, the students involved only want to be allowed to express their legitimate pride in their Confederate ancestry without being punished, humiliated, threatened or intimidated.

As of yet the SLRC is only investigating this matter, nor have we agreed to represent any Cherokee County families. The legal side of our organization is not involved - yet. My prayer is that your earnest good will and cooperation will help us keep it that way.

I have been a civil rights advocate my entire adult life and am the immediate Past President of the Asheville Branch of the NAACP. I know and have walked both sides of the street. Currently I am in the midst of a 260 mile march from North Carolina to Charleston, South Carolina - carrying a Confederate flag! I am here to tell you that I have received love and support from the Black community all along the way.

If you will lay aside the seeming institutional bias against Confederate symbols that seems to stalk Boards of Education and postpone a final decision on any Confederate symbols ban, it will be my pleasure and that of the Southern Legal Resource Center to assist you.

The SLRC has many excellent interpretive and educational resources at its command and would welcome the opportunity to make a presentation to your board, outlining the history of various Confederate symbols, their usage and their place in our own culture. If I may say so, this is a situation that calls for education and dialog, not for a hasty policy decision that could have serious consequences.

Please feel free to contact me at (828) 669-5189, and to visit our website, www.slrc-csa.org. Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely yours,

H. K. Edgerton
Chairman, Board of Advisors
Southern Legal Resource Center
Confederate Southern-American

Dear Dr. McNeel,

This morning my heart is overflowing with thanks to you in the behalf of your students and your community.

Thank you so much for over ruling Byron Jones and his bigoted policies.

In the past few days I have received many calls for help from your community and students . All were deeply concerned, some were distraught, some angry to the point of violence, and others felt helpless and alone. They were all looking for help and answers.

You have provided that help and we are all deeply appreciative.

Thank you for replacing paranoid, ignorant school policy with sensible, educated policy.

Hundreds of thousands of Southern heritage advocates thank you.

And most of all, I know that your students and their parents thank you for restoring their freedom to be proud of their ancestors, their heritage and who they are.

Best Regards,

Dewey Barber
Owner, Dixie Outfitters

***************************************************************************

UPDATE: Setting the Record Straight,
July 15, 2009
by Dewey W. Barber, Dixie Outfitters

Sensible policy has prevailed at South Caldwell High School and no further problems regarding shirts bearing images of the Confederate battle flag have been brought forth.

We have learned since this incident that Byron Jones, principal at SCHS during this incident, is a true Son of the South. His Confederate ancestors proudly fought for the South in defense of their home and family. Mr. Jones knows the real truth of our Southern heritage.

We have also learned that the overturned SCHS policy that discriminated against our Southern children was not composed by Mr. Jones but was dictated by his superiors.

To: South Caldwell High School Parents and Teachers

From: Tom McNeel, Superintendent

Re: Resolution of South Caldwell High School Issues

Date: March 26, 2004

As Superintendent of the Caldwell County Schools, I regret that the Confederate Flag issue at South Caldwell High School has become the focal point of the school rather than teaching and learning. After a full investigation and consideration of all points of view, the following action appears to be in the best interest of students, staff, school and the instructional process:

• Effective Monday, March 29, students may wear attire that includes the Confederate Flag, so long as the attire does not contain language, or other content, which is inflammatory, threatening, hateful, obscene, demeaning, or promoting racial disharmony. Violation of these provisions will result in strong penalties, including, but not limited to, out-of-school suspension.
• Effective immediately, county and school administrators will be proactive in eliminating any form of racial disharmony among students in all schools, starting with South Caldwell High School. Action to be taken will include, but not be limited to:
• Convening informal student, parent and community groups for discussion, dialogue and understanding;
• Establishing viable Human Relations Councils at all schools and for the school system. Such councils will include students, teachers, parents, administrators and others that represent the diversity of the school and the county;
• Implementing a formal educational program on diversity/human relations for all school system employees and students; and,
• Establishing an active Peer Mediation program at each high school and middle school to facilitate amicable resolution of student differences and controversies.

I regret that this past week has been filled with so much controversy, so many rumors and so much unrest. We believe that the above action will resolve the matter, restoring a safe, orderly and caring school. Your child is our top priority and we will do whatever is necessary to provide for his/her safety and promote learning.

Should you have comments or questions, you may call my office at 728-8407, Ext. 106, or email me directly at tmcneel@caa.k12.nc.us. Thanks for caring and thanks for all you do to make South Caldwell High School the very best.

Dear Dr. McNeel,

The War for Southern Independence was fought because the South did not have fair representation in the Federal government. In 1860, 75% of the federal revenue was being paid by the South, who comprised only 30% of the population. During the War for Southern Independence, over one quarter million (260,000) Southern men, women and children gave their lives upholding the principles espoused by the founding fathers of the United States. The Confederate battle flag is a symbol of their sacrifice. It is a symbol of our Southern heritage.

To deny our Southern children their right to display symbols of their heritage is not only a violation of freedom of expression as guaranteed by the First Amendment but is also a "mind crime" which strikes at self esteem of each child who loves his family, his ancestors and his Southern home. Censorship of this sort severely damages the self image of a child and can have long lasting repercussions in that child's life.

Schools and individuals who embrace the popular liberal propaganda that the Confederate Battle flag as a symbol of racism do not know the true history of the flag or the War for Southern Independence. They are ignorant followers of organizations and individuals who use "racism" as a tool to raise money and divide our Southern black and white people.

The war against all things Southern began in earnest when Kewesi Mfume took the reins of the NAACP. Mfume's real name is Frizzell Gray. Frizzell was born and raised in the city neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. He is the father of five illegitimate children by three different women. He is a former gang member who had been arrested for theft on two occasions. In 1996, he outlined a five point plan to restore the integrity and effectiveness of the NAACP.

Mfume was well aware that stirring up racial animosity and strife would benefit the coffers of the NAACP. He began in earnest to urge his members to charge the South and all things Confederate with racism and slavery. In a letter dated Jan. 12, 2000 he states: "as such, our principle objection and litigate efforts until now have been directed to the Confederate flag use as an official symbol. However, we feel we are at a great crossroads and feel that a compromise would not be beneficial to anyone. In the near future, efforts will be aimed at the removal of racist names, mascots, monuments and ending the glorification of the Confederate soldier through what is termed reenacting. We also feel that there could be better use of State and Federal resources by the closing of museums and battlefields which are dedicated to the preservation of slavery."

Writing almost 100 years ago, Booker T. Washington knew Mfume's false tune. "There are a certain class of race problem solvers who don't want the patient to get well because as long as the disease holds out they have not only an easy means of making a living but also an easy medium through which to make themselves prominate before the public."

Frizzell Gray knows nothing about our Southern culture. He obviously knows nothing or doesn't care about the real truth concerning the War for Southern Independence. Frizzell Gray does not represent the majority of black people. Frizzell Gray is an opportunist, a bigot, a liar, a thief, a philanderer, and a racist.

Frizzell Gray is severely harming the very people that he professes to help and some school administrators are aiding him in his ignoble cause.

Frizzell Gray is telling you school administrators (via his NAACP followers) what the Confederate Battle Flag means to the Southern people and some of you believe him!

The truth is the Confederate Battle Flag represents all Southern and even Northern Confederates regardless of race or religion and is the symbol of less government, less taxes, and the right of the people to govern themselves. It is flown in memory and honor of our Confederate ancestors and veterans who willingly shed their blood for Southern Independence. To many Southerners, the Confederate Battle Flag is THE symbol of their culture and homeland.

This symbol of our Southern heritage has never caused a disruption. It is people who cause disruptions.

Public schools should encourage respect for the culture and heritage of all of their students, including Southerners. Students who do not respect individual freedom and the diversity of cultures in the United States should be disciplined on a case by case basis. Punish those who cause disruptions, but do not punish those who are innocent and whose only crime is that they are proud of their family, their culture and their home. I urge our public school administrators to not foster ignorance, hate and resentment among the innocent Southern students who only want to be proud of who they are.

I urge you to give your students the freedoms that are enjoyed by all United States citizens, including the freedom of expression as set forth in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It is the mandate of our schools to educate its students, not censor them.

Dewey W. Barber
Owner, Dixie Outfitters

On Sep 10, 2009, Goodoldrebel.com wrote:

Mr. Barber,

I saw a post on Southern War Room that seemed to indicate that you had arranged for Mr. Edgerton to address the students at Hawthorne High on Monday.  My wife called the school this morning inquiring if this was going to be open for the public to attend and she spoke with the Assistant principals who didn't seem to be aware of Mr. Edgerton coming or of any events on Monday.  Is this still on?   If it is, have you heard anything about if the public can attend?
 
Thanks

Jason Henderson

**************************************************

Jason,

HK will speak at 8:30 am on Monday, Sept. 14 at Hawthorn HS. It was confirmed (again) at 1PM today by the principal.

It will not be open to the public.

I am quite confident that after HK's presentation that the children will once again be able to wear Dixie Outfitter shirts. We shall see.

Thanks for your support and I will keep you informed.

Best Regards,

Dewey
 

Unfortunately, many schools and/or school systems are trying to take away your free speech rights by banning Dixie Outfitters and other Southern heritage t-shirts and symbols. We are not going to give up. We will fight this senseless banning until the schools understand that they are violating our first amendment rights and allow Southern Heritage Symbols back in their school systems.

Dixie Outfitters has been fighting School Banning for a long time.  Here are cases where we made a difference.

South Caldwell High School - Lenoir, NC

      CLICK HERE to see the letter written by Dewey Barber; owner of Dixie Outfitters, to the school superintendent.

      CLICK HERE to see the letter written by Dr. McNeel; School Superintendent.

      CLICK HERE to see the "thank you" letter written by Dewey Barber.

      CLICK HERE to see the letter written by H.K. Edgerton to the Cherokee County Schools superintendent.

      CLICK HERE to see the letter written by David and Margaret Wright to the superintendent.

Schools are banning Southern Heritage Symbols

Unfortunately, many schools and/or school systems are trying to take away your free speech rights by banning Southern Heritage t-shirts and symbols. As we are dedicated to preserving our heritage, we have compiled a list of resources that you can use to help fight this injustice. Use the links to the Left to get involved in preserving YOUR heritage.

www.HawthorneHeritage.org is Born
October 2, 2009

This web site was created to inform the public about the travesty that has been perpetuated against the students of Hawthorne High/Middle School by Principal Veita Jackson Carter and Supt. Boyd.

This site will stay active until the students of Hawthorn High/Middle School regain their rights of free speech as guaranteed by the first Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

It will stay active until the students of Hawthorn High/Middle School that cherish their confederate ancestors, family and heritage are treated with the same dignity and respect that all other heritages receive.

 

Criminal and Civil Lawsuit / Alachua County School Board, Alachua County Superintendent & Veita Jackson Carter
October 1, 2009

Date: September 30, 2009
To: supt@gm.sbac.edu

Dear Dr. Boyd,

This letter is intended to serve as my intent to file both criminal and civil charges against an employee of yours, a one Veita Jackson-Carter acting in her capacity as Principal of Hawthorne Middle/High School, and as such an employee under your supervision, thereby leaving me no other choice but to add both your office and the Alachua County School Board as parties to the civil lawsuit.

I will allege that Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter entered into a verbal contract with me to deliver as a guest speaker at 8:00 AM on the morning of September 14, 2009, a speech to the Middle School students of Hawthorne, and later that afternoon I was to address the High School students. I was led to believe that shortly after the students would be allowed to vote on whether or not they would continue wearing apparel depicting the Confederate Flag.

After spending several hours preparing my message, tailoring two different ones because of the age differences of the children, and driving some 12 hours to reach the school, I was informed by Ms. Jackson-Carter that she had changed her mind; I would only be able to address the entire school for 15 minutes from the Media Center. I would spend some thirty minutes with Ms. Jackson-Carter, showing and explaining the materials I would use for the now shortened presentation (shirts that bore the images of Black Confederate soldiers, to include the historic Dixie Outfitters shirt that bore my very own image, the Un-Civil War edition by Mike Scruggs, a laminated copy of several Black Confederate soldiers, their units and their roles in the Confederate Army, a collectors edition of several essays on the love between the Southern African Slave, and his Southern White master, and other memorabilia from the Historic March Across Dixie, and especially to include the most noted letter from Rev. R.L. Dabney in September of 1865 to Union General Howard of the Freedman's Bureau) . After agreeing that I could use these materials, I would present them to Ms. Jackson-Carter and let her know that I needed to return to my car to get the same for my presentation.

Ms. Jackson-Carter expressed grave reservations of me returning to my car un-escorted without security. In her own words; "While that flag is a Badge of Honor for you, there are members of my staff and students who see it differently and it could get you hurt." I confess that I did not sense these hostilities, but she assured me that it was her school, and that she knew her people. She would escort me to my car and back to the Media Center. After the shortened presentation, I would leave the same materials for Ms. Jackson-Carter to deliver to the School Board, and ask for a copy of the taped presentation. She would inform me that she needed permission from the School Board to give me a copy. I still don't have that copy.

After my presentation, Ms. Jackson-Carter would announce to the listening audience that there would later be other guest from the University to discuss the same topic, and that there would be allotted time this very day to discuss the subject matter. I interjected that I would be available for the rest of the day should any of the students or faculty have questions of me. Shortly after returning to her office, Ms. Jackson-Carter would inform me that several teachers had asked if I would address their classes. She would escort me to the History class where I would spend some forty five minutes. Upon returning to the office of Ms. Jackson-Carter and asking of her whereabouts, she had told me she would take me to the next class. The staff looked somewhat befuddled, and told me that the Principal had issued a do not disturb order. They also told me that while they had not heard all of my presentation, they were impressed by what they had heard and were looking forward to seeing it run again. I was asked to have a seat and wait for the Principal to finish whatever business that she had.

After sitting in the outer office for some thirty minutes, I would again approach the front desk and ask if someone could place a note under the Principal, asking as to where I should go next? There was no response from Ms. Jackson-Carter's door. I then asked if they would call her with my inquiry? There was a deafening silence from the intercom. I informed the staff that I had some twelve hours to drive on my return home, and could not just sit here with no response from the Principal. I was now left to make my way alone through the hall that led to my car where the Principal had indicated that my life would be in harms way. However, to make matters worse, thanks to her, I now had a bulls eye on my chest.

I would later learn that I had been used by the Principal to carry out a planned farce. Never were the children going to use my presentation to help them make an informed decision, my presence was only a part of the crafty procedure meant to deceive those who governed her actions. I was told that there had already been some sort of vote taken by the parents and students.

I can only conclude that Ms. Jackson-Carter through her actions not only conspired against the display and wearing of the Confederate Flag, but also conspired to see that some sort of bodily harm come to me with her actions. I also conclude that Ms. Jackson-Carter broke the trust of not only this community and her students, but also the trust of those who hired her. She has made a mockery of the Supreme Court decision of Tinker vs. the Des Moines, Iowa School Board and other court rulings. And I find it hard that she can continue to be called Principal.

I also seek compensation ($500.00) in the form of an Honorarium waive because of breach of verbal contract, 2. $20.00 X 12 for each of the shirts left in the possession of Ms. Jackson-Carter, 3. $24 X 3 for copies of the Un-Civil War Books, 4. $10 X 3 for each copy of the Rev. Dabney memorabilia, 5. $10 X 3 for the laminated copies of the Black Confederate soldier, 6. Mileage compensation $.54 per mile = , 1,200 (to and from destination = $648.00), $100.00 out of pocket expense for food. Total = $1,620.00.

Respectfully,

HK Edgerton
President
Southern Heritage 411

This is How Much Our Southern Heritage Means to Us
September 29, 2009

On Sept. 29, 2009, Dixie Outfitters sent the following email and pictures to Principal Carter and Supt. Boyd. To date neither has responded to this email.

**************************************************

From:  dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject:  Fwd: dixie funeral
Date:  September 29, 2009
To:  jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
Cc:  supt@gm.sbac.edu, mshartwelles@g.sbac.edu, hollinsh@gm.sbac.edu, hk.edgerton@gmail.com

Principal Carter,

The following pictures and email was sent to Dixie Outfitters by one of our customers.

I wanted you to see how much we love our Southern heritage.

It is hard for me to imagine how you can deny the children in you school the freedom to be proud of their family, ancestors and southern heritage.

How cruel and heartless can you be?

Your failure to respect the feelings and beliefs of other people and to ban a symbol that means so much to so many without any reason, other than  only  your own biased opinion, is the most bigoted act I have seen in many years.

You should be ashamed of yourself.

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

**************************************************

Hey Joann, this is Shawn with Southern Impulse,

here are the pics of the funeral of the kids we lost in a tragic boating accident on Lake George, in central Florida on Memorial day weekend. My nephew Clay who was 4, Ciara who was 14, and Cole who was 5. They loved to wear their Dixie Outfitters shirts so much that we did a Dixie Outfitters themed funeral.

Thank you so much for allowing us to do this.

Shawn

Principal Carter Throws out the Ballots!
September 17, 2009

After making a big show of passing out ballots to students so they could vote on whether or not to ban the Confederate battle flag and bringing in speakers to have a forum on the issues, Mrs. Carter has thrown out the ballots and decided to keep the Confederate ban in place!

Mrs. Joann Justice, grandmother of two of the affected students, said she received a voice mail message from Ms. Jackson-Carter on September 17, stating that the principal had set aside the written ballots and instead conducted her own “informal poll” among students and faculty as to what they thought about the Confederate flag.  The results of this survey, she said in her message, had led her to stand by her original decision to ban Confederate symbols.  She did not, according to Mrs. Justice, say how she had conducted her survey or what the actual results were.  The principal also stated she had taken a videotape of Edgerton’s lecture to the Alachua County Board of Education for review by Superintendent Daniel Boyd, but did not say what Boyd’s reaction had been.  When Mrs. Justice questioned Ms. Jackson-Carter on these points in a follow-up phone conversation, she said the principal “became very irate” and terminated the call.
 

Principal Carter Says She Will Let the Students Decide!
September 3, 2009

After repeated complaints by parents, Principal Carter has decided to let the students decide whether or not to ban the Confederate flag. Reports indicate that there will be a forum with the students Principal Carter will let the students discuss and decide the issue. Ballots will be passed out to the students and a vote will be taken regarding the ban on apparel bearing the Confederate battle flag after the forum is concluded.
 

September 3, 2009

From: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Date: October 5, 2009
To: supt@gm.sbac.edu

Dear Mr. Boyd,

Today I came across this poll taken by WCJB-TV in Chiefland, Fl.

Please see attachment Poll at bottom. You can also see this poll at www.wcjb.com

Please note the poll asks:

Should schools ban clothing made by Dixie Outfitters when they contain emblems such as Confederate flags?

1,360 votes total

94% (1,218) of the votes say: "NO. There are bigger things to worry about"

6% (71) of the votes say: "Yes, The schools need to decide what is offensive"

This pretty overwhelming in favor of the Confederate flag.

Are you ready to go against the wishes of 94% of the people who pay your salary?

Best Regards,

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

Dixie Outfitters Founder Sends Email to Superintendent Boyd
September 1, 2009

Dear Dr. Boyd,

I am Dewey Barber, owner of Dixie Outfitters, the premier supplier of Southern Heritage apparel in the world. You can visit our web site at www.dixieoutfitters.com.

We at Dixie Outfitters have worked every day for the last 12 years to illuminate the true history of our Southland. It is a passion of mine to tell the "rest of the story" regarding the War for Southern Independence and how it is so relevant to the morass we find ourselves in today with our overpowering federal government.

The political correctness that is stifling our country has now reared its ugly head at Hawthorn High School in the recent ban of Confederate apparel by Principal Carter.

In the last few days I have received many emails and calls from parents of your students regarding Principal Carter's ban.

I am sending you this email to let you know of the actions I have taken today to preserve what is left of our Southern heritage. I am including below, emails that I have received and emails that I have sent.

I or none of compatriots want to disturb or disrupt your school and its important job of teaching your children. We did not start this fight but we sure are not going to back down either. We will fight to the end through all lawful means for the parents and the children in your school district so that they are allowed to be proud of their heritage and of who they are.

The struggle has just begun......and it can be stopped just as quickly, without harm to anyone.  Apparel bearing the Confederate flag has been worn in your school since the opening of Hawthorne High without any problems whatsoever. Why change what has been working without incident for all these years because of one prejudiced and/or ignorant administrator?

I'm asking you as a Southern gentleman, for the sake of the children in you school to do the right thing and continue allowing Confederate apparel in you school.

Sincerely,

Dewey W. Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

 

Principal Veita Jackson-Carter Discriminates Against Confederate Heritage
August 28, 2009

Today at Hawthorne High/Middle School at the direction of Principal Veita Jackson Carter, several students were singled out and threatened to be sent home and/or parents called because they had images of the Confederate flag on their shirts.

These students were not causing any disturbance. They were not being rude or overt in their behavior and the shirts were not racial or offensive in nature. They were wearing shirts similar to the ones they had been wearing (with no problems) for the last six years.

These students were not in violation of any part of the Hawthorne High dress code.

Some of the parents of these students were called and told to bring their children a different shirt so their child could continue their day at school.

Some students were allowed to stay at school but had to turn their shirts inside out.

The parents and students that were singled out by Veita Jackson Carter were puzzled, confused and angry at this blatant discrimination. Some parents visited the school and talked with Principal Carter about this new policy. They attempted to reason with Principal Carter and get an explanation but were treated with contempt and told that the Confederate flag offended Principal Carter (not the students) and that she ran the school and she would make the rules.

These parents felt they had no where to turn so they sought help from Dixie Outfitters (www.dixieoutfitters.com) and the Southern Legal Resource Center (www.slrc-csa.org)
 

Dixie Outfitters Founder sends Email to Principal Carter
September 1, 2009

Principal Carter,

I am Dewey Barber, President of Dixie Outfitters. Please view our web site at: www.dixieoutfitters.com

I am also a supporter of H.K. Edgerton. Please view his web site at: www.southernheritage411.com

Mr. Edgerton and I have been working together for several years. We share the same goals and we work toward these goals every day.

Our goal is to bring the truth of our Southern heritage to the public.

We believe that various groups have distorted history for their own purposes. We believe that the Federal government sacrificed 700,000 American lives in the "Civil War" so that it could control the money and resources of the South. In 1860 the South paid 80% of the federal revenue although they were only 30% of the American population. The war was about money and power.

 We understand that the Confederate government was also influenced by money and economic issues and that they were wrong on some issues. We understand that the Confederate government was wrong on the issue of slavery.

We also understand that they were right on many issues. They had the right to secede if they felt they were not being represented fairly or were being taxed unfairly.

We believe various groups try to divide black and white people and control them for their own political purposes. We know that these groups use false information about the Confederate flag and the Confederacy to accomplish their goals. We know that 85% of the black people in America during the WBTS stayed in the South and supported the South by working in the fields and factories and many even fought as confederate soldiers. They did not revolt as Lincoln hoped they would do upon the his issue of the Emancipation Proclamation (in 1863, two years after the war started)

We understand that this is a complex issue with many factors and many different views. There are always two sides to every story.

We love our Southern heritage with all of its warts, the good and the bad.

The Confederate flag is the symbol of the South and our heritage. When I see the flag I immediately think of the brave Southern soldier who left his home and family to sacrifice his life for their safety. Some may think of the warm breeze blowing through the mossy oaks, or fishing by the lazy river, or hoop skirts, or sweet tea, or grandma and grandpa.

Some think of slavery and racism.

We all may think differently and that's O.K. 

Each of us still has the right to think as we wish. We still have the right to be who we are.

To deny the right of people to express themselves, to deny people the liberty to be who they are, to disparage another persons heritage, to be judgmental to the point of ignoring other people’s opinions is not constructive but is detrimental.

Your decision to ban the Confederate flag in your school has upset many people thus far. Some, including television reporters, have called me for information and help.

Today I am sending hundreds of bumper stickers to your area to support those who feel their rights are being violated by your ban.

You have stirred up a hornet’s nest that may have far reaching effects.  Southern heritage advocates all over the country will soon be swarming all over your school, emails and letters by the thousands to your superintendent and administrators. Television and newspapers will converge on your school. Marches and demonstrations are a certainty.

Sadly, the ones who will suffer are your students and their education for they will be distracted to the point that little learning will take place during these times.

I certainly do not want this to happen but I and thousands of others will not sand by and let our heritage be trampled .....so I humbly ask that you reconsider your banning of the Confederate flag.

Let us be who we are. Grant you students the right to feel free to express themselves.

I do not want you to tolerate hate, discrimination or racism. If such actions take place, deal with them on a case-by-case basis.

Please do not put all of us who love our Southern heritage and Confederate flag in one giant pool and label us as racists.

To us it's not a black and white thing to us. The race issue is not even in our thoughts. It is who we are. We are Southern and proud of it.

Sincerely,

Dewey W. Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

 

From: Angelia082058@aol.com
Date: October 3, 2009
To: jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
Cc: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject: Re: Confederate Flag

Ms. Jackson-Carter:

How many students would be told NO fpr wearing Obama or Malcom X tee shirts? I dare say none. You are a racist and a bigot. That Flag is NOT a racist statement. You need to go back and read your History. There is no way you can "ban" this shirt anymore than you can ban the Malcom X or Obama shirt. If I had a child in your school, I would take him/her out and teach at home. YOU are what is wrong with America today. You cannot take away the freedoms of our kids, even though you may want to.

Mrs. A.K. Hill
 

From: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Date: October 5, 2009
To: supt@gm.sbac.edu

Dear Mr. Boyd,

Today I came across this poll taken by WCJB-TV in Chiefland, Fl.

Please see attachment Poll at bottom. You can also see this poll at www.wcjb.com

Please note the poll asks:

Should schools ban clothing made by Dixie Outfitters when they contain emblems such as Confederate flags?

1,360 votes total

94% (1,218) of the votes say: "NO. There are bigger things to worry about"

6% (71) of the votes say: "Yes, The schools need to decide what is offensive"

This pretty overwhelming in favor of the Confederate flag.

Are you ready to go against the wishes of 94% of the people who pay your salary?

Best Regards,

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

From:  sejolley@tampabay.rr.com
Subject:  My Southern Heritage
Date:  September 11, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

This is a copy of the email I sent to the Alachua County officials and Hawthorn officials.
 
I hope that it does some good.
 
**************************************************
 
Dear Sir or Madam,

Greetings to you in Hawthorn a place many of my family call home, many for all eternity.  As of late, my Southern Heritage has been under fire, though I do not understand why.  Please bear with me while I lay down a foundation for my pride.

Augustus H. Johnson married Queen Ann Hall, daughter of Major William Hall, on April 12, 1843 (please, Google Hall Plantation Tallahassee).  As a farmer, in 1857 they moved from Gadsden County to Alachua County and purchased 2,240 88/100 acres in Township 11, Range 21, Alachua County (Book C page 96). The western border of said property is the eastern border of Lake Lockloosa.  He, Augustus H. Johnson, is buried at the Baptist Church Cemetery in Hawthorn.  Florida had been a state for 12 years at the time he relocated.

His sons, Robert Emmett Johnson and Thomas Augustus Johnson are also buried in Hawthorn at the new cemetery, in the Northeastern corner. Robert Emmett’s first wife was Abrilla Jones Hawthorn.  Thomas Augustus married Arabella Stewart Hawthorn.  Both Robert Emmett and Thomas Augustus were veterans of the War of Northern Aggression, known in the history books as the Civil War, which it was NOT.

We, as southerners of Florida, can thank Col. J.J. Dickison, of Marion County for the job that the Home Guard did to protect the interior of the State of Florida.  He was never defeated in battle and his nickname, given to him by the Union army, was “Dixie.”  Dixie’s land was the territory between the St. Johns River and the Gulf of Mexico.

This is just a small part of my Southern Heritage, in an effort not to bore you with my complete lineage I shall not continue with this line of my family heritage.  Just know that it is very important to me, and one that I am proud to own.

I wonder how much attention is given to the Morill tariff of March 1861 and the fact that the southern states paid 84% of the tariffs, rising to 87% in 1860.  How are those facts presented in the history classes in your educational process?  If George Washington was a patriot, then Robert E. Lee cannot be a rebel.
 
Aldous Huxley once said, “Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.”
 
If a problem does not exist, what is there to repair?
 
More Hawthorn-Johnson information can be found in your public library in Hawthorn.
 
Sincerely,
 
Stephen Eugene Jolley,
Proud descendant of Augustus H. Johnson,
and a Fifth Generation Floridian
 
Member, General Jubal A. Early Camp #556 SCV
 
 

From: HK Edgerton, hk.edgerton@gmail.com
Date: October 5, 2009
To: supt@gm.sbac.edu
Subject: Re: BOYD LETTER ATTACHED

Dear Dr. Boyd,

While the return of my materials left with your Principal, Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter, in your letter appear to satisfy your determination of all liabilities owed to me, it does not entirely satisfy mine.
 
I shall remind you that some sort of agreement was made with those members of your community and your Principal, and it was your Principal who reneged on that agreement by banning the public from hearing my presentation that was to be so tailored to the Middle school students, their parents and teachers in a morning session and then so tailored to be presented to the High school students, their parents, teachers, and other interested members of the community in a later session. And further that after my presentation, the students would be allowed to vote on whether to continue wearing apparel that depicted the Southern Cross.
 
I find it very annoying that you did not comment in your letter about Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter’s actions, or is it that you support them? From what I have been able to ascertain from many of the parents of the children who attend Hawthorne / Middle High and from my personal observations from the short time I spent there, Ms. Jackson- Carter, an employee of yours, used her own personal biases to concoct an elaborate scheme to rid the school environment from any depiction of the Confederate Flag.
 
While there was no complaint lodged to either your office, the School Board, or any other governing entity, Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter set upon a course of actions to complete her ruse, which I now ascertain that I in some way was made an unwitting part of that scheme. She not only betrayed the trust of the community that she was hired to serve by trying to pit the young Black students against the young White students using the Christian Cross of St. Andrew as her weapon of choice, but has also caused the White parents of your school community to wonder what other bias that she might have against their children, and arguably the Black parents to wonder to what lengths she will go to use their children to satisfy whatever dark agenda she has planned.
 
As I pointed out in my previous email message to you, the Supreme Court in Tinker ruled that an Administrator such as yours cannot just arbitrarily take away the limited First Amendment Rights of these school children by banning symbols or display of those like the flag without some substantial evidence of a disturbance, or reasonable determination that the display will cause a disturbance in the school process. At Hawthorne-Middle High, there was nothing other than the personal biases of Ms. Jackson-Carter.
 
I came to your school in good faith hoping that I could bring some understanding to your students and community of the place of honor and dignity earned by a man who looked like me beside a man that he not only called Master, but also Family and Friend, not only during the War for Southern Independence, but also before as together they built the economies of the entire civilized world that was complicit in the economic institution of slavery. And of the love that existed between this Southern man called master and this Southern man called slave in lieu of the institution of slavery. However, your Principal, Ms.Veita Jackson-Carter, would attempt to sabotage even this by limiting my presentation to only 15 minutes.
 
In conclusion, I shall copy this correspondence to the Alachua County School Board, the Alachua County District Attorney, Dixie Outfitters, and to my Attorney for disposal. May God bless you sir.
 
HK Edgerton
President
Southern Heritage 411
 

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Bazz Childress, basilchildress@insightbb.com
Date: Sun, Oct 4, 2009
Subject: Hawthorne High, Fl. Confederate Fag Ban
To: jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu

Veita Jackson-Carter, M.E.D-P,

I understand you're facing potential lawsuits associated with the above referenced.

Please know, I along with many others will be aiding the effort to fund same with satisfaction. 

It is time for the nonsense you and others have proliferated to end.

Basil D. (Bazz) Childress
Lexington, Kentucky

**************************************************

-------- Original Message --------
Subject:    Opinion from a Jeffersonian
Date:    Sun, 04 Oct 2009
From:    Bazz Childress, basilchildress@insightbb.com

To:    undisclosed-recipients:;

Walter Williams
http://economics.gmu.edu/wew/articles/09/IsDisagreementWithObamaRacism.htm
W Willaims -  DiLorenzo is right about Lincoln

A few years ago during one of his frequent guest host appearances for Rush LImbaugh, a caller began the usual 'South/racism/impediment to national greatness" theme.

Williams cut him off and explained a few things  -- ending with, "does the fact I display a Confederate flag on the credenza behind my desk in my office make, me, a black man a racist?"

Such confusion is the great subterfuge that's been so successful.

A sample at street level of how these conflations have confused and distracted:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LMmx-znVZc&feature=related

The simple fact of the matter is the Confederate flag is the universal symbol of opposition to tyranny.  Both the "national greatness" and Jacobin/Socialist crowd know it - which is why so much effort, from their respective positions is spent lying about matters.

This country was born out of Virginia and the Jeffersonian tradition that developed after winning independence.  That country died in 1865.  We are living in the confused (and now collapsing) aftermath.  The question is what comes next?

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig9/longcore6.1.1.html

BDC
 

From:  dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject:  Hawthorne High, Fl.  Confederate Fag Ban Update 9-29-09
Date:  September 29, 2009
To:  demastus@aol.com

Southern Compatriots,

Principal Carter of Hawthorne High, Fl. is a liar, a Southern hater and bigot.

First,  Principal Carter agreed to let H.K. Edgerton make a presentation concerning the Confederate flag to the students of Hawthorne High in person. According to her statements, H.K. would speak in the auditorium, first to the middle school children, then to the high school children. However, upon arrival of H.K. on Monday Sept. 14, 2009, Mrs. Carter broke her promise and would not allow H.K. to speak directly to the students but instead made him speak via closed circuit television.

Principal Carter also promised to wait till H.K. spoke to the school before passing out ballots which would "let the students decide" whether or not to ban the Confederate flag. But, in fact, she began passing out and collecting the student ballots two days before H.K. made his presentation.

Thirdly, when the ballots were counted, the results were not released and Mrs. Carter "trashed" the ballots and unilaterally imposed the ban of the Confederate flag at Hawthorn High without regard for her students opinions or her promise to "let the students decide."

Ladies and gentlemen, we have given Mrs. Carter every opportunity to do the right thing. Many of you have written emails and called Mrs. Carter but evidently she is blinded by her prejudice against our heritage and symbols.

We have no alternative but to continue to the fight in the behalf of our Southern students.

The Southern Legal Resource center has been notified and is working with the parents of the Hawthorn High students. Dixie Outfitters is also working with the parents, forming a strategy to defeat Principal Carter and her discriminatory policy.

Be assured that we have just begun to fight this injustice and we are in it for the long haul. I will keep you informed of the actions we will take and how you can help us. For now, please send me copies of any emails that you have sent to Hawthorn High in the past and any you send in the future. We intend to post these emails so all who are following these events can view them.

If you wish to contact the school administrators again to voice your displeasure, contact info. follows:

Principal
Veita Jackson-Carter, M.E.D-P
jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
352-481-1900
FAX 352-481-4859

Superintendent
Dr. W. Danial Boyd.Jr
supt@gm.sbac.edu
352-955-7880

Vice Principal
Libby Hartwell
mshartwelles@g.sbac.edu
352-481-1900

Deptuy Superintendent
Sandy Hollinger
hollinsh@gm.sbac.edu
352-955-7880

School Board of Alachua County
Kirby Smith Administrative Center
620 East University Avenue
Gainesville, Florida 3601-5498

Thanks,

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters
 

From:  dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject:  Re: dixie funeral
Date:  October 2, 2009
To:  tareeann@windstream.net

Ya'll,

When I saw those pictures I was enraged at the injustice that our children face when they are not allowed to celebrate their heritage like every other child in America.

Dixie Outfitters is dedicated to rectify this injustice.

As for Mrs. Carter, I hope every time she closes her eyes to go to sleep, she sees those pictures.

Dewey

**************************************************

On Oct 1, 2009, tareeann@windstream.net wrote:

Oh, my gosh, those pictures took my breath away. That is the most awsome and saddest thing I think I have ever seen. I just wonder what Mrs. Carters reaction was to that?
 

From:  dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject:  Fwd: dixie funeral
Date:  September 29, 2009
To:  jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
Cc:  supt@gm.sbac.edu, mshartwelles@g.sbac.edu, hollinsh@gm.sbac.edu, hk.edgerton@gmail.com

Principal Carter,

The following pictures and email was sent to Dixie Outfitters by one of our customers.

I wanted you to see how much we love our Southern heritage.

It is hard for me to imagine how you can deny the children in you school the freedom to be proud of their family, ancestors and southern heritage.

How cruel and heartless can you be?

Your failure to respect the feelings and beliefs of other people and to ban a symbol that means so much to so many without any reason, other than  only  your own biased opinion, is the most bigoted act I have seen in many years.

You should be ashamed of yourself.

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters

**************************************************

Hey Joann, this is Shawn with Southern Impulse,

here are the pics of the funeral of the kids we lost in a tragic boating accident on Lake George, in central Florida on Memorial day weekend. My nephew Clay who was 4, Ciara who was 14, and Cole who was 5. They loved to wear their Dixie Outfitters shirts so much that we did a Dixie Outfitters themed funeral.

Thank you so much for allowing us to do this.

Shawn

From: HK Edgerton, hk.edgerton@gmail.com
Date: September 17, 2009
To: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject: The Boogeyman was not there; An Open Report and Reply (Faith Missionary Academy and Hawthorne Middle High)

Dear Zane,

God bless you. On Thursday morning, September 10, 2009, I had the opportunity to be the guest speaker at Faith Missionary Academy in Grutli Laager, Tennessee. The Honorable Pastor Stacey D. Smith would open up his school to the community at large.
 
My message would resonate as it always does about the place of honor and dignity earned by my African ancestors under the Southern Cross beside a man that he called not only Master, but also Family and Friend, and of the causes and struggles faced by these honorable people that led them to war against their fellow country men from the region of the country called the North. And most importantly I spoke of the continued efforts to divide and separate Southern Black folks from their Southern White family with the desired intent of breaking the spirit once and for all of the Southern White man.
 
After I spoke, the laudatory and out pouring of love that I received from all was humbling, and shall forever be forged in my memory as one of my greatest days on Gods' earth. "The Bogeyman was not here"!
 
On Friday morning , September 11, 2009, I would receive a phone call from a dear lady who resides in Hawthorne, Florida. She would relate to me a story of a Black Principal of Hawthrone Middle / High School who had every intent on banning her students from wearing any and all clothing that depicted the Southern Cross. She would relate to me that there had never been any trouble or disturbances between any of the students over the display of the flag . Yet it appeared that the Principal all of a sudden manufactured this discourse. The Principal, she told me, had outright flatly denied any conversation on the matter; her decision was final. She asked me would I help? Later that day she would again call and tell me that the Principal after having visited my website and hearing a great outcry from the public, changed her mind and had agreed not only to allow me to speak to her students, but would let them vote on whether to impose a ban on clothing that depicted the Confederate Flag shortly after my appearance .
 
On Monday morning, September 14, 2009, I would arrive at Hawthorne Middle / High School donned in the uniform of the Southern soldier, get out of my car with the Southern Cross in hand and ask a very nice student where the Principals office was located. I would drive over to the building where the young man had indicated and decided that I would carry some of the articles I always carry for teaching aids (my shirts, the Uncivil War Book, copies of the Honorable Rev. R.L. Dabney's letter to the Union General Howard who was in charge of the Freedman's Bureau , dated September 11, 1865, and other material from the historic March Across Dixie, laminated copies of Black Confederate soldiers etc.).
 
The Principal, Ms. Veita Jackson-Carter, I found to be a very amiable person, and I told her that I loved her for having the courage and sense of fair play in inviting me to come and speak to her school before she made what I described as not only a rash, but unwarranted decision to ban the flag of the Southern people.
 
I spent about a half an hour along with her discussing the aforementioned materials that I had come with, leaving her a sample of all. She told me that she had changed the format that I would used for the day, partly out of her concern for fears that she didn't know what kind of reaction she might encounter from her students. I felt somewhat disappointed because she told me that I would not be speaking directly to her students, but from the media center via closed circuit television. She also told me that she had handled several thousand phone calls from the outside public who had expressed a desire to hear me speak. Again out of fear of what to expect, she had decided to close her school to the public. I expressed my disappointment for that decision.
 
When I told her that I needed to return to my car to bring my flag and more of the same items I had given to her with her permission for my presentation, she would agree, but felt that even though I saw my flag as a badge of honor, some of the students and staff might not think so, and because of those feelings, I might need a security escort. She began to call for the school Resource Officer and I told her even though it was her school, I didn't feel the need for what she proposed. She would escort me herself to my car and back to the media center amongst some very polite students.
 
Ms. Carter informed me that I would have only 15 minutes to give my presentation. I was greatly disappointed in this change of affairs, but for at least twenty five minutes, I said all that I could think of to at least stimulate the thinking process of the students of Hawthrone Middle / High of all the reasons that no Southern child of God should ever be asked to commit an act, let alone turn his back on or shame the memory of their honorable ancestors.
 
Ms. Carter would allow me after the media presentation to visit the History Class. I was informed by the History teacher that her class had several questions to ask me. One young Black girl was the first to respond. She began by saying that she didn't mind them pointing to the White students wearing their shirts that expressed their heritage as long as she could wear her Obama shirt. I stopped her right there and explained to her that here lies within the problem. I told her that the wearing of the Confederate flag was not only the White children's heritage, it was a shared Southern Heritage. I then had her come and hold up each of my Dixie Outfitters and Southern Heritage 411 shirts that not only depicted Black Confederate soldiers, but also the one that carries my image from the Historic March across Dixie. I was only sorry that I did not have the permission to honor the request from her and her peers to get one of the shirts because I felt that I would need to have the permission from the Principal who was not now present.
 
On the Black Board of the history class was written a question; How were the Southern slaves treated? Time constraints finally stopped me from painting a picture far different from the one painted by folks like Harriet Beecher Stowe and the Northern school teachers who had come here ever since the establishment of the public school in 1865, whose designs was to inculcate in the thinking process of our children a northern virtuosity that is to this very day plain and simple poppycock meant to force our children to hold their heads down in shame of the memory of their ancestors for going to war to protect their homeland that had been invaded by a man that would bankrupt them while violating all Constitutional Law in the process. His main weapon of choice had been then and now the Southern Black man.
 
I would leave the History teacher several of my shirts and other materials to advance my argument that trained cadre of Black folks across the Southland of America provide the Southern army with all the implements of war, food stuffs to feed the army, protected the home places while the men were away, went off to war and in many cases like the men of General Forrest whose image was with them on one of my shirts, with his very own caption: these men fought and stayed with me and no better Confederates ever lived.
 
I would re-enter the lobby of the school, take several photographs, give a shirt to a young black staff member who I was told was the principal of the Middle school, hug several students, joke with one of the black teachers that I had better leave before I got put out. She told me in a very serious tone; we are not like that around here. we enjoyed your visit and presentation.
 
I never got to say goodbye to Ms. Carter. I was told that she had indicated that she was not to be disturbed. However, again may God bless her for allowing the Table of Brotherhood to come to her school, and for a moment allowing the Sons of former slaves to sit down at that table with the Sons of former Slave owners with a dialogue to heal the wounds that those who would divide us had so eloquently prepared. The Bogeyman was not there at Hawthrone Middle/ High.
 
After having said, Zane, I hope that Ms. Clara will invite me to her truth to tell the students a different story than the one meant to divide us.
 
HK Edgerton
 

We had already learned from Mrs. Justice that (a) paper ballots were distributed to the students from September 8 – 10, and that (b) similar ballots were sent home to the parents on or about September 11, to be returned no later than September 14 – the very day of H.K.’s appearance.  H.K.’s visit, from a practical standpoint, was nothing but window dressing – although of course he did not know it.
 
Mrs. Justice received a voice mail message on her landline from Principal Carter at 9:40 this morning.  The message, she said, was very hurried and garbled but the gist of it was as follows:
 
1.  Mrs. Carter had decided to “set aside” the ballots she had made such a show of collecting.
2.  Instead, she said, she had waited until H. K. ‘s departure and then conducted “an oral poll” among the teachers and students as to whether the flag should be allowed.
3.  She had then taken the videotape of H. K.’s talk to the county school board office and had it reviewed.
4.  She was standing by her original decision.
 
Mrs. Carter did NOT bother to mention:
 
 .  How she conducted this “poll” of hers;
 .  What the overall results were and how they were arrived at;
 .  What, if anything, anyone at the Board of Education said to her regarding the videotape
 
In fact, Mrs. Justice called her back and asked her all of the above.  At that point, Mrs. Justice says, Mrs. Carter became “irate and rude” and told her she would have to take it up with the Board of Education.
 
Which is exactly what we intend to do, through Mrs. Justice, who is sending us a copy of the dress code and other material.
 
We will probably put out our own news release on all of this once we have had a chance to examine the documents in question.
 
By the way, the SLRC’s position is that from a procedural standpoint none of this silly ballot or poll business is even relevant – except to demonstrate the Principal’s duplicity.  No vote or poll or similar action can alter the fact that the students’ rights were violated.  YOU CANNOT VOTE AWAY A CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT.  That is nothing more than an attempt to distract attention from the mail issue, and the main issue is what we intend to pursue.
 
Roger McCredie
Executive Director
SLRC
 

From:  tareeann@windstream.net
Subject:  Mrs. Carter's decision is in...
Date:  September 17, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

Mr. Barber,

Mrs. Carter just informed us that her decision was made and she is standing by her NO!! The confederate flag will NOT be worn at Hawthorne High School. Boy did I know that was coming. Just wanted to fill you in on the latest. I knew Mrs.Carters mind was made up from the beginning. The next question is what is next?  JoAnn asked me to ask you if you would give her a call on her home phone when you have a chance, her cell phone is not working right now.

Terri
 

From:  tareeann@windstream.net
Subject:    
Date:  September 14, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

Dear Mr. Dewey,

Just wanted to take the time to thank you for sending HK  to us here in Hawtorne. HK did a fabulous job! I just wish Mrs. Carter had not changed things up at the last minute. It was very educational and a great experence for those that will open their closed minds. I must add that Mrs. Carter is very closed minded. There were several students that even replied that she was rude to Mr. HK. I truly think her mind is set in stone. That's okay though, the battle has just begun!! Thank you, you are AWESOME!!!!

Terri Sneed
 

Hawthorne High School, Fl  Confederate Flag Ban Update 9/14/09

Dear Compatriots,

I want to personally thank each person who emailed or wrote letters or called the administrators at Hawthorne High and expressed their feelings about the Confederate flag ban imposed by Principal Carter.

You made a difference!

Principal Carter was "overwhelmed" by the public response. Instead of an outright ban imposed by administration, Principal Carter changed her mind and proposed that the students take vote on whether or no to impose a ban on clothing incorporating the Confederate Flag.

Principal Carter also agreed let HK Edgerton speak directly to the students of Hawthorne High prior to the vote. 

This morning Monday, 14 Sept. 2009,  H.K. addressed the entire school via closed circuit television and then addressed a history class in person, concerning our beloved Confederate flag.
 
HK says he was treated with great respect and much love by all of the students and faculty at Hawthorn High. He had many request by students and faculty for samples of his shirts that depict not only himself and Southern Heritage 411.com, but show black Confederate soldiers like Holt Collier and other black confederates who willingly fought by the side of General Nathan Bedford Forrest.

H.K.'s presentation was video taped by the school. This tape and samples of his shirts will be viewed by the school board in days to come.

The student vote on whether or not to allow the Confederate Flag apparel at Hawthorne High  will be taken in the next few days. Lets all pray for a favorable outcome.

I will post the results as soon as it becomes available.

Thanks again to those of you who took the time and made the effort to help preserve our Southern Heritage.

Best Regards,

Dewey Barber
President, Dixie Outfitters
 

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Pamela Courtney, osiyofriends@yahoo.com
Date: Sun, Sep 6, 2009
Subject: Re: Fwd: Hawthorne High School
To: HK Edgerton, hk.edgerton@gmail.com

Dear HK,

Safe travel to Florida.  It looks by the area code that it's somewhere around the Gainesville, Alachua area?

My parents live there.  We had a great time last night and it was so good to see you. 

Leah (my former grad classmate from Tusculum) said to tell you she didn't get her hug. 

The highlight for Jeremy was meeting you.  He thought you were the most inspirational speaker and was proud to get a photo taken with you.  I think he put it on his facebook.  I put the photo of you, General Lee, Summy and me on my fb.

I look forward to seeing you next time. 

Ms. Pamela
 

From: "Gary Poore", pooreg@bellsouth.net
Date: September 6, 2009
To: "HK Edgerton", hk.edgerton@gmail.com, dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject: Re: Hawthorne High School

Sunday afternoon, Sep 06, 09
 
HK and Dewey:

Thanks, HK, for doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves.  I can only echo what Mr. Barber said, "....there is not another person in the world that is better prepared to speak for our Southland than you."
 
And, Mr. Barber, thanks to you for standing by HK when the going has been difficult.  You, Sir, are a true Friend of the South.
 
Gary Poore, Adjutant
Dixie Defenders
Camp 2086
Cross City, Florida
 

From:  dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject:  Hawthorne High School
Date:  September 4, 2009
To:  hk.edgerton@gmail.com

HK,

You are confirmed to speak to the student body at Hawthorn High School in Florida at 8:30 am on Monday, Sept. 14.

Your contact is principal Veita Carter. Her phone number is 352-481-1900.

There will probably be two sessions that morning. The first will be the middle school students and the second the high school students. Teachers and parents will also be attending.

This is a great opportunity to make a difference in the lives of many young folks and there is not another person in the world that is better prepared to speak for our Southland than you.

Best Regards,

Dewey
 

From: KRBulldogs@aol.com
Date: September 3, 2009
To: dewey@barberandcompany.com
Subject: Hawthorne Incident

As an assistant principal at a high school here in Tampa I am appalled at the way those school administrators acted. In Tampa we are a melting pot full of Yankees. We have a small black population at my school, but I have worked at an inner city school with a large black population. Kids have worn shirts with Confederate symbols on them and we have never had a problem. I did work for one  principal who thought it may be a problem and maybe we needed to tell the kids to take them off. After a short history lesson to him, and the fact that I would not do that, he let it go. He just felt that the black kids would be offended. They weren't and could have cared less. Those administrators at Hawthorne are probably black militants or Yankees.  Both ignorant.
 
K.R. Lombardia
 

Mr. Barber,

This evening I sent the email below to all the individual listed in Ms. Sneed's original letter.  I do not have her email address and would ask that you forward this on to her as she may be unaware that the Confederate flag is protected by Florida Statute.  While I'm sure the school system will say that it doesn't apply to this case (don't they always?), it might help her make her case.  Thank you for your permission to post the email to my site and please let me know if there is to be any protest action regarding this matter in Gainesville or Hawthorne.  I live in Wakulla County which is only an hour or so away from Alachua County and would be happy to be there should a rally be planned.

Sincerely,

Jason Henderson

**************************************************

-------- Original Message --------

Subject:  Confederate Flag ban at Hawthorne High.
Date:  Thu, 03 Sep 2009
From:  "Goodoldrebel.com", webmaster@goodoldrebel.com

To:  supt@gm.sbac.edu, jacksovl@gm.sbac.edu
 
Superintendent Boyd and Principal Carter,
 
I am writing to ask that you reconsider the current ban of apparel and other items containing the Confederate Flag at Hawthorne High School.  The Confederate Flag is an emblem of the cultural heritage of native Southerners and is worthy of respect.  In fact, it is protected specifically from mutilation and disrespect by Section 256.10 of the Florida Statutes.  I am unsure as to why your school and the school system of Alachua County felt the need to ban the display of a flag that the Government of the State of Florida deemed worthy of protection but I surely believe it is out of line with the feelings of the vast majority of the population your county.
 
According to the parent of one of your students and the individuals who brought this to the attention of my website there has been no history of disciplinary problems regarding the wearing of Confederate flag apparel at Hawthorne High that would warrant this type of censorship.  If that is not the case, please feel free to set the record straight.  The stated reason for this ban that I have been privy to was that it offended school staff.  While it is regrettable that the banner under which Southern soldiers fought in defense of their homes and families was found to be offensive by a member of school faculty, it is even more regrettable that such a sweeping action of censorship was taken.  Students in middle and high school should be being taught methods on how to handle something that they find personably objectionable instead of relying on the powers that be or Government to shield their sensitivities through the use of censorship.  This type of mollycoddling does nothing to prepare them as to how to deal with conflicts in the "real world" or how to respect the cultural differences found in today's society.
 
In closing, I would again like to ask that you repeal this policy at Hawthorne High School and throughout Alachua County Schools. If a student chooses to display the Confederate Flag as part of their apparel or on their personal property in a nondisruptive manner, it should be allowed.  The place of the school system is to educate our children and to provide a safe atmosphere in which for them to learn, not to be an arbiter or censor of what some consider an emblem of their heritage.  Censorship is a slippery slope and one that leads to an ever-increasing encroachment on what is "acceptable".  If you ban the Confederate Flag, it will only be appropriate to ban other cultural symbols such as the four-leaf clover symbol of the Irish, the tartans of the Scottish, or the red, yellow, and green Africa symbol that is popular with African Americans.  Instead, why not let us learn to live with those symbols and the things they represent to those who wear them.  I look forward to and welcome your response in this matter.
 
Sincerely,
 
Jason Henderson
 
Webmaster - GoodOldRebel.com

 

From:  tareeann@windstream.net
Subject:  Re: protest shirts
Date:  September 3, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

Dewey,

Thank you for sending me all the information of everything that is going on. Thanks again for all that you are doing. I am in the process of getting a petition signed from parents and students. The bumper stickers are great! If there is anything else I can be doing please let me know. I may have over looked something that I have not thought about. Thank you so much.

Terri Sneed
 

Mr. Barber,

I spoke with Ms. Jackie Johnson ((352) 955-7253, x 228) who is the public affairs person with Alachua County Schools and she indicated that the principal of the High School there in Hawthorne has decided that she will have a forum with the students and let them discuss and decide this issue?

Have we heard anything about whether that is actually true and whether it will be put to a vote of the entire student body?  I questioned her regarding any incidents in the schools that might have lead up to this and she said that she wasn't aware of any but that it is not always reported to the school board.

Thanks

Jason
Webmaster - GoodOldRebel.com
 

From:  tareeann@windstream.net
Subject:  banned shirts
Date:  August 29, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

Dear Mr.Dewey Barber,

My name is Terri Sneed and I am writing this letter in regards to a meeting that JoAnne Justice and myself held on 8/28/09 at Hawthorne Jr./Sr. High School in Hawthorne Florida.

The morning of 8/28/09 I received a phone call from Hawthorne Jr./Sr. High School. They called to inform me that my children needed to be picked up or that I was to bring a change of clothes to them so they could continue their day at school. Due to the fact that my children have nothing that is not permitted in our dress code, I immediately asked what they wore to school that was not appropriate for our schools attire. Libby Hartwell (V.P.) informed me that the shirts my son has been wearing for 6 years was not appropriate attire and the same for my daughter that has been wearing hers just as long. That same morning I find out that JoAnne Justice has also been called to pick up her child that has also been wearing the same shirts for many years. Much to our surprise we find out that many other children have been forced to remove their shirts, to turn them inside out or to be sent home if they had these shirts on. We are Totally appalled at what is taking place. Can they take from us our heritage? This is who we are!!!! The confederate flag has been in our home-town and our school for as many years as I can remember.

When we meet with the principal-Veita Jackson Carter,M.E.D-P, Vice Principal-Libby Hartwell and the Dean-Laura Green I specifically asked them all if there has ever been an issue, fight or controversy over these shirts being worn. The answer was NO.

We live in a small town where these children black and white have grown up together from Pre-K to 12th grade. Everyone knows everyone and NEVER has there been an issue with the confederate flag. When I asked WHY these children could no longer where their shirts their only response was that it offended them. Not that it offended the children but it offended them.

Politely they were handed the information that you made available to us. We figured that since they were new to our school that maybe they were ignorant to what the confederate flag stands for. So I asked that the information be read aloud so everyone could get a "Short History Lesson". They informed us after reading the article that their minds were made up and that they rule the school. Last to my knowledge we pay their salary and the History books cannot be changed.

Personally, I think it is a true sign of ignorance as to what the Confederate flags stands for. It truly disturbs me to think that there is one person that can change the life style of many. Taking from our children who they are and what they stand for. Proud to live in the south, black and white. In our town it has never been a racial thing and my question is why make it one now?

I hope that there is something that maybe you can do to stand behind us as parents that mean no harm to anyone but wanting to stand up for the rights of our children and what they believe in. Thank you for your time and hope to hear from you soon.

Truly yours

Terri Sneed

Here is some of the information that we have found for the school and school board:

Hawthorne Jr./Sr. High School      
P.O.Box 40
Hawthorne, Florida 32640

Principal
Veita Jackson-Carter, M.E.D-P
352-481-1900
FAX 352-481-4859

Vice Principal
Libby Hartwell
mshartwelles@g.sbac.edu
352-481-1900

High School Dean
Laura Green
352-481-1900

School Board of Alachua County
Kirby Smith Administrative Center
620 East University Avenue
Gainesville, Florida 3601-5498

Superintendent
Dr.W.Danial Boyd.Jr
supt@gm.sbac.edu
352-955-7880

Deptuy Superintendent
Sandy Hollinger
hollinsh@gm.sbac.edu
352-955-7880
 

From:  tareeann@windstream.net
subject:  protest
Date:  September 2, 2009
To:  dewey@barberandcompany.com

Dewey,

Thank you and I will be waiting to hear from you on those shirts. The e-mails you sent were great, sounded very good. My son and daughter wore two of your shirts yesterday with the original confederate flag on it, the one with the round group of stars. It was a soldier holding it on a pole while going in to fight in war. They made them tape up the flag pole, flag and the small flag on the front. I feel her mind is made up and I am glad that you let her know the battle has just begun. The TV station is sure keeping in touch with me. Thank you Dewey you are great.

Sincerely,

Terri Sneed