Right-winger TikTokers racked up views and support as they rushed to the defense of a 12-year-old student who was kicked out of class for having a patch of the Gadsen flag on his backpack, which a school administrator incorrectly linked to “origins with slavery and the slave trade.”
In a video of the incident, Jaiden’s mother can be heard correcting the administrator that the “Don’t Tread on Me” flag traces its origins back to the Revolutionary War—not slavery.
The incident prompted swift backlash on social media, with many TikTokers commending Jaiden for not backing down.
Conservative TikToker Greg Price called Jaiden “an instant legend” and added that “you know that he gets straight A’s, you know that he’s probably a sick athlete, and you know that he gets so many hugs from the girls in the hallway at his middle school.”
Price called the teacher “hilariously wrong” about the flag’s origins and later added: “I don’t know if Jaiden or any of his family members will ever see this TikTok, but if they do, your son is a legend. What an absolute king … keep telling his idiot teachers to ‘don’t tread on me.’”
Gadsen Flag Video:
@greg_price11 12-year-old king Jaiden was kicked out of class at his school in Colorado Springs for having a “Don’t Tread on Me” patch on his backpack. #greenscreenvideo #greenscreen #fyp #foryoupage #donttreadonme #gadsden #coloradosprings #coneservative #republican #politics #trump #trump2024 #maga #redpilltiktok ♬ original sound – Greg Price
Price’s TikTok has garnered nearly 150,000 likes as of Wednesday morning, and 1 million views, as commenters praised Jaiden for maintaining his composure during the conversation with the administrator.
“He’s doing a great job holding in the laughter idk if would’ve been able to do that,” wrote one person.
“Even though he knew he was right he stayed calm and respectful,” commented another user.
“Kid absolutely rules,” wrote someone else.
Other accounts shared the video of the interview with the teacher that Jaiden was present for.
“Clueless teacher. Kicks kid out for the dont tread on me flag,” wrote one user whose video garnered over 3.6 million views.
@redpillpusher1776 Wiw! Clueless teacher. Kicks kid out for the dont tread on me flag. #gadsdenflag #fyp #publicschool #publicschoolteacher #donttreadonme #donttreadonme🐍 #teachersoftiktok #revolutionarywar #georgewashington #conservatives ♬ original sound – RedPillPusher1776
As the incident went viral, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) stepped in to call the Gadsen flag “a proud symbol of the American Revolution and an iconic warning to Britain or any government not to violate the liberties of Americans.”
On Tuesday, the school’s board of directors reversed the administrator’s decision and “informed the student’s family that he may attend school with the Gadsen flag patch visible on his backpack.”
