Fayetteville teacher under fire for ‘stomping’ on flag in class

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A Fayetteville teacher has come under fire after pictures of him “stomping” on the American flag began to circulate social media.

The picture was posted to Facebook by Sara Taylor, a parent of a student at the school, and showed Lee Francis standing in front of his class at Massey Hill Classical High School with a crumpled flag at his feet. According to Taylor, Francis had asked his students for a lighter or scissors, but when no one had either of those things, he “stomped” on the flag instead. Taylor admitted that her child was not in the class but had a friend who was present.

Francis took to Facebook to defend himself, explaining that he was teaching a lesson about the Texas v. Johnson case, which found that flag desecration was protected by the First Amendment.

“The rest of the class understood. I don’t even teach the student of this Sara Taylor person,” he wrote.

Cumberland County Superintendent Frank Till Jr. said on Tuesday that he had just learned about the incident and that he wanted to get all the facts before deciding if any punitive action should be taken against Francis.