STEPHEN DAVIS: USA-themed spirit day canceled for being too political at Massachusetts high school

Wellesley High School, located in, Wellesley Massachusetts, recently faced criticism after it canceled its USA-themed spirit day as part of the school’s spirit week, citing concerns about controversy and politicization.

The school’s spirit week, featuring days like “Wild West Wednesday” and “Throwback Thursday,” excluded the initially planned USA-themed day. Olivia Spagnuolo, a member of the Student Unification Program responsible for choosing spirit week themes, revealed that the school administration swiftly rejected the idea of a USA-themed day, noting that similar proposals had been dismissed in previous years.

“The administration was not going to let this happen,” said Spagnuolo. “It wasn’t a topic for discussion,“ adding that the administration deemed it unacceptable because it “separated people” at the school.

Following community criticism, Principal Jamie Chisum addressed the controversy in a letter to students and parents, expressing regret for the unintended negative impact. Chisum explained, “The high school Administration decided not to go forward with that spirit theme because it felt really different than the other themes kids came up with for the week. We felt that the topic has been politicized beyond our school and we wanted to avoid politics.”

“We acknowledge that the impact for some people has been just the opposite of our intention and that we have inadvertently politicized this activity,” Chisum continued. “I am definitely sorry for any negative effect this has had on kids and families.”

One parent called the ordeal “absurd” adding, “I think it’s sad and depressing we’re at this state that celebrating the United States is political.”

This piece first appeared at TPUSA.