Members of a community in Oklahoma rallied behind a local teen whose high school has forbidden him from flying an American flag on the back of his pickup truck.

Caleb Horst just began his senior year at Edmond North High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, a city of nearly 100,000 residents about 15 miles north of Oklahoma City. Last Wednesday, he drove to school with a giant American flag attached to his truck, just as he has done "for quite a while," he said.

'It is the practice of Edmond Public Schools to not permit students to fly or bring flags of any kind on our school campuses.'

However, school administrators informed him that he could not continue to fly the flag on his truck and warned him not to show up with the flag on Monday.

Rather than heed the warning, Horst and dozens of his fellow American patriots, both students and members of the community, drove to the school's campus Monday morning and peacefully protested the ban on American flags affixed to vehicles.

According to the New York Post, more than 50 cars arrived at 7 a.m. that morning — some adorned in the red, white, and blue — to show their support for Horst and for public displays of patriotism more generally. They even recited the Pledge of Allegiance together.

"It’s our First Amendment, so it’s kind of hard for them to infringe upon our rights," Horst said.

"In the end, we’re all American, all united under that flag, and there’s not anything anyone can do to separate us."

Vance Miller, another senior at the high school, claimed the issue "hit home" for him because he has a brother in the service.

"He’s fighting for that flag; we should be allow[ed] to fly it," he said, according to KOCO. "It’d be different if we were trying to make a political statement, but there’s nothing political about it."

On Thursday, four days before the protest at the school, Edmond Public Schools issued a statement, insisting that "this is not about the American flag or patriotism" but about safety and "disruptions and distractions during the school day."

"It is the practice of Edmond Public Schools to not permit students to fly or bring flags of any kind on our school campuses. This practice has been in place for several years and is explained to our students at the start of the school year along with various other policies and procedures," the statement read in part.

The district also noted that it "proudly displays the American flag prominently" in classrooms and outside its buildings, that students recite the Pledge of Allegiance every school day, and that the national anthem is played before most sporting events.

But Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters and some state lawmakers indicated that the district's self-described "practice" of banning American flags on vehicles is unacceptable.

"We have seen parents across the state who are so tired of people, young people, being told to hate their country or not be proud of their country," Walters told 9 News.

Walters also stated in an X video that he is "working on guidelines" for school districts in his state to "ensure no student is ever targeted for having an American flag."

"We want our young people to be proud of our country. Sounds like a lot of patriotic students at the school, and we want to encourage them to show love for the country."

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