Dad Discovers Dumping Devil at Daughter's School is No Academic Exorcise
by Jim Brown
February 26, 2004
(AgapePress) - A Christian father in Florida is continuing his fight to get his daughter's middle school to drop its "Maroon Devils" mascot.For months now, Ken Locklear has been asking Roosevelt Middle School in West Palm Beach to ban all devil symbols. He began his crusade after learning that his sixth-grade daughter was being required to wear a band T-shirt depicting the school's devil mascot.
Locklear feels the mascot is inappropriate and needs to be removed from the academic buildings, the students' uniforms, and any other places the Maroon Devil emblem is used in association with the school. The concerned parent says the diabolical mascot is "not the best that we can do for our kids, and since we can do better, we have an obligation to do it. Let's do it collectively."
But Locklear says school officials -- and the principal in particular -- have resisted his efforts to get rid of Roosevelt Middle School's devil. According to the parent-activist, the principal is "saying the history of this mascot is a racial thing, and they're very proud of it and want to keep it, and I can't for the life of me figure that out."
Locklear is suggesting that the Palm Beach County School Board allow free elections on campus so the students can vote to choose a new school symbol for themselves. "The principal is trying to claim so much pride in their mascot," he says, "and I'm thinking, how much more pride could there be than actually choosing your mascot while you're at that school?"
The Florida father contends that such a vote would not only be a source of pride for the students for years to come, but would also promote and demonstrate the democratic process to the young citizens. "I didn't have the opportunity to do that during middle school, and I think it's a pretty good opportunity for kids," he says.
Since the local school board has refused to respond to his objections regarding the Maroon Devils mascot, Locklear is poised to sue the school. He is being represented by the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy and intends to file a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the devilish mascot.
