MCPS teacher sues school, principal over Palestinian flag ban

A Maryland teacher has sued her principal and county school board over the removal of a Palestinian flag sticker from her classroom.  

Hibah Sayed, a science and coding teacher at Sligo Middle School, filed suit against the Montgomery County Public Schools Board of Education and Sligo’s principal, Peter Crable, alleging a viewpoint-based First Amendment violation.  

The complaint argues that Sayed’s free speech was unconstitutionally restricted by the removal of Palestine’s flag from the inside of her door and the directive that she could not represent Palestine in any way, including an order to not wear a Palestinian scarf or T-shirt.  

“Sligo Middle School’s rule against representing Palestine in any manner is as black and white viewpoint discrimination as this court will see,” the complaint reads. 

Sayed posted several national flags, including Palestine’s, on the inside of her door in August 2023. According to the complaint, Sayed used this part of her classroom as a cultural bulletin. She was the sponsor for the school’s Minority Scholars Program and received consistently positive performance reviews. 

The flag did not cause any issues until the October 7 attacks, after which a student complained about the flag, but school administration did not seek to remove it. 

Just over a year later, Sayed found the flag had been removed from the door and was told by administration she could no longer display the flag or wear her keffiyeh, a traditional Palestinian scarf, as they could be construed as antisemitic. The lawsuit alleges that the real reasoning behind the decision was to placate the views of a student and parent that had complained about the flag.

She replaced the flag with a watermelon sticker — which is often used to represent Palestine — and was again told she could not display it. Sayedwas also forced to change out of a shirt that read, “Gaza: Soul of my Soul,” which she said was worn in remembrance of a Palestinian child that had been killed by Israeli forces.  

She then received a directive in her contract prohibiting her from promoting any message related to the Middle East. Sayed filed a complaint with MCPS’s Department of Compliance and Investigation who denied it initially and upon appeal. 

The complaint argues that the school displays many national flags, including the Israeli flag, and only had an issue with the Palestinian flag, which would constitute viewpoint-based discrimination. 

“Defendants have never made country-specific exceptions to this practice before, displaying the flags of Russia, Israel, and other nations that polarize no differently than Palestine’s flag,” the complaint reads.

The school also does not prohibit social messages, as many teachers, including Sayed, display pride flags and Black Lives Matter designs without issue.   

Sayed is seeking a permanent injunction from further prohibitions against her representation of Palestine and to have the directive in her contract declared unconstitutional, in addition to compensatory damages and legal fees.