School Principal Says 'No' to Animal Rights Club. This Student Is Fighting Back

https://sentientmedia.org/school-principal-says-no-to-animal-rights-club/



All Thomas Flack, 16, ever wanted to do was save lives. Since he was little, he wanted to be a veterinarian, pretending to operate on stuffed animals. Now, he is a junior at Volunteer High School in Church Hill, TN, and regular at the Hawkins County Humane Society where he has logged over 1,000 hours caring for at-risk animals over the past five years.

But strangely, when Flack tried to start an animal right club at his school, filing the necessary paperwork and getting two teachers on board to help organize the club, his principal said no.

Without much of an explanation as to why he could not start an animal rights club, Flack decided to take matters into his own hands. Last week, he began circulating a petition in favor of the club to his fellow classmates and meeting with members of the student government to advocate for his cause.

Volunteer High School students and parents poured in their support. Flack’s petition has already collected over 1,500 signatures. He also caught the attention of international animal organizations. PETA, the Hawkins County Humane Society, and Appalachia: Mission Pawsible have reached out to him in support.

Still, his principal wouldn’t budge, so Flack sought legal counsel and found that his principal’s disapproval of the animal rights club may be in violation of federal law. After all, students do not give up their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and assembly when they walk in the door.

Principal Wines said no to an animal rights club at Volunteer High School because, as he put it, the vehicle for students serving others is already in place. He cited the Key Club, a service program for high school students founded back in 1925, and told Flack to try and partner with them.

Flack was angry—and rightfully so. The Key Club is expensive to join and does not have an animal-specific mission. An affordable, animal-specific club would allow more students to raise funds for local animal shelters and be sure that the money was only going to help animals.

Yesterday, Flack and his attorney sent Principal Wines a letter of intent to file a lawsuit if Volunteer High School continues to infringe on students’ speech and assembly right by obstructing the formation of a Students Against Animal Cruelty and Testing (SAACT) club. If the club is not approved within 10 business days, Flack and his attorney will file a lawsuit against Wines, Volunteer High School, and the Hawkins County School District, as stated in the letter obtained by Sentient Media.





Petition
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/923/490/055/demand-volunteer-high-school-to-approve-saact-now/?fbclid=IwAR27PfUpvBQTT2PHwsuNYj3DBkEllPqY03j9NQhPGi8hIN-vqim-iZt5Yyw