Add your name to show support! Students should be able to wear cultural regalia at their own graduations.
Naomi Peña Villasano is just one of many Colorado students who are being denied the right to wear a cultural sash or stole during their high school graduations.
That must change.
While many school districts allow students to celebrate their culture and heritage during graduation ceremonies, others — especially in rural Colorado — continue to prevent Latino, African American and other students of color from doing so. This inconsistency in the application of students’ First Amendment rights highlights a gap in state law.
In 2023, Coloradans welcomed and celebrated a new law, Senate Bill 23-202, which clarified that Native American students have the right to wear traditional cultural regalia at any public graduation ceremony.
But the unwillingness of Garfield County School District 16 and others to allow students to wear stoles adorned with both the American and Mexican flags during graduation ceremonies highlights the need to do more.
Add your name to support legislation in 2024 to clarify that students have the right to exercise their First Amendment rights by wearing cultural regalia celebrating their race, ethnicity or heritage at graduation ceremonies.
