Mill River Union High School has found itself in hot water after the student, Preston Flanders, was told his photo would not be included in the yearbook.
Defending his photo, Flanders told a local TV news station, WCAX, he “grew up hunting” and wanted the photo to reflect that part of his life.
The photo shows Flanders holding an AR-15 rifle. That type of magazine-fed rifle is generally not known for hunting small game, such as squirrels, or large game such as white-tailed deer. That type of rifle is also referred to as an “assault weapon” by anti-gun activists.
The school district's superintendent told WCAX the photo was rejected because depictions of guns are generally not allowed under school policy.
Aaron Terr, director of public advocacy at the Foundation for Individual Rights Expression, says he believes the school is overacting because the photo shows a gun.
“The point of a senior portrait is for a student to express their authentic selves,” Terr says, “and that's exactly what the student was doing here.”
Terr also points out the student wanted to convey his enjoyment of hunting in his senior photo, which is probably common in that rural Vermont community.
“It’s just pretty farfetched for the school to suggest the photo was or creates a safety concern,” he tells AFN. “It's not like the student was threatening anyone."
One wrinkle in the controversy is Nick Flanders, father of the high school senior, serves on the school board for the Mill River Unified Union School District.
Yet another wrinkle in the story is the high school’s mascot: a colonial minuteman.
