Hastings parents and school officials spent Wednesday night arguing over a proposed policy that could pull pride flags and other personal symbols off school walls, with one mother asking a pointed question: if a gay pride flag goes up, does a straight pride flag get equal treatment? The debate centered on a draft rule known as Policy 505, which would bar political, religious and ideological displays across the district’s classrooms except for materials related to board-approved curriculum, official school programs or activities, or a legitimate instructional purpose.
What the Draft Policy Would Restrict
According to KSTP, the policy states its purpose is to “protect the free speech rights of students and employees while preserving the educational mission of the school district.” The draft would prohibit displays that promote or oppose a political candidate, party, ballot question or other partisan activity, and it would also block materials that promote a personal, religious or ideological viewpoint unrelated to board-approved curriculum, official programs or a legitimate instructional purpose.
The language goes further, requiring that employees not display materials a reasonable person would see as making school spaces seem primarily dedicated to or solely identified with one particular group, identity, viewpoint or interest, per the same report. That provision is what has pulled pride flags and similar symbols squarely into the conversation, even though the policy never names them directly.
Parents Split on Whether a Problem Exists
Hastings parent Carrie Tate told officials she has heard plenty of complaints about the issue and argued that pride flags are not a universally accepted moral or religious viewpoint, saying visually supporting one student group but not others feels wrong to her. She also asked officials directly whether straight pride flags would be permitted if gay pride flags were displayed in classrooms.
Not everyone in the room agreed a problem needed fixing. Scott Doran said he had received no complaints about those kinds of classroom displays in six years, and Kristine Wehrkamp Herman said she questioned changing a policy to address what she considered a nonexistent problem. Wehrkamp Herman also said she did not want common walls to feel sterile or like a jail because nothing was allowed.
Parent Lori Best struck a different note, saying all students should feel welcome and arguing the proposed language is unclear and could make some people feel unwelcome instead. Best added that it was still positive, in her view, that officials appeared to be slowing down rather than rushing the policy through.
Legal Review and Next Steps
District officials say the proposal is now in the hands of the district’s legal team, with any discussion of revisions taking place during a policy meeting on Thursday, KSTP reported. The school board plans to discuss the language further at a later meeting, with the district anticipating it could bring the policy back for adoption by the end of the year.
How Other Minnesota Districts Have Handled Flags
Hastings is not alone in wrestling with this question. As the Post Bulletin has reported, Minnesota districts generally treat classrooms as politics-free zones, though their rules vary widely. Worthington allows classroom flags only when tied to curriculum with an educational purpose, while Austin requires that anything on classroom doors and walls, including flags, directly relate to district-approved curriculum. Duluth bars flags on school grounds entirely except by special permission of the superintendent, and Rochester has instead treated the pride flag as a form of official government speech. Byron, meanwhile, removed a Ukrainian flag after its display was seen as running afoul of the district’s ban on open political support in classrooms.
The Star Tribune has reported that the Worthington school board voted to remove Pride flags from classrooms outright, while flags began disappearing in Bemidji after that district adopted its own viewpoint-neutral stance, illustrating just how differently similar language can play out from one district to the next.
Detroit Lakes offers a cautionary example of how quickly these disputes can escalate. That district is currently being sued over a rainbow-sticker and flag ban it passed in July and rescinded the following month, according to MPR News. The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota and two students in the district filed the lawsuit, alleging the ban violated their constitutional rights. A Detroit Lakes administrator later raised concerns about how a revised policy banning “ideological” flags would apply to Gay-Straight Alliance displays, and the district’s board ultimately postponed any policy changes rather than move forward.
