School District Bans National Guard Recruiter From Handing Out T-Shirt Because of What's on the Front

A New York school district told a National Guard recruiter to stop handing out t-shirts that feature a silhouetted soldier holding a gun, claiming that the image of the weapon is inappropriate for the school's young audience.

Alan McCartney, interim superintendent of Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk School in Ravena, New York, told conservative commentator Todd Starnes this week that some teachers complained about the t-shirt, which led to its removal from the campus.

"A pointed gun is just not appropriate for a high school," McCartney said, noting that images of weapons and violence violate the school dress code. "A couple of teachers realized it showed a silhouette of a rifleman on it."

While the superintendent admitted that some people simply see the shirt as an advertisement for the military, others take a different view.

"I realize some students look at the t-shirt and all they see is the National Guard. And that is a good thing," he said. "Others look at the shirt and all they see is the rifle."

The recruiter was approached by the school's principal last Friday and was asked to stop giving out the shirts; he complied and left campus, Starnes reported.

National Guard spokesman Richard Goldenberg told the commentator that officials will comply with the school's request not to hand out the shirts out any longer.

McCartney is defending the move — one that has created some debate among parents.

"Where do you draw the line? Is it okay to wear this weapon because it’s a National Guardsman wielding it?," he said. "[But it’s not okay] if you’ve got a t-shirt on from a video game that shows somebody aiming at gun at somebody’s head?"

Read the entire story here.

(H/T: Todd Starnes)