Garden Grove lawmaker gets involved in UC flag ban controversy

IRVINE, Calif. (KABC) -- A Republican senator in Orange County is getting involved in the controversy after a University of California, Irvine student council vote banned flags, including the American flag, from the school lobby.

Sen. Janet Nguyen of Garden Grove is expected to introduce legislation on Monday that would create a state constitutional amendment to prohibit state-funded colleges and universities from banning the display of the American flag on school property.

On Thursday, the student council narrowly approved the flag ban on a 6-4 vote. But that passage was short lived. On Saturday, that resolution was vetoed by the executive cabinet on a 4-1 vote during a private meeting.

The cabinet said the ban was misguided legislation that does not represent the opinions of nearly 30,000 students on campus.

Matthew Guevara, the ban's author, said that the U.S. flag has been "flown in instances of colonialism and imperialism" and that banning national flags was in the spirit of inclusiveness.

The resolution would have banned flags from being on display in the common lobby area of student government offices. It prompted the removal of the American flag from a lobby wall.

The ban sparked controversy throughout the campus and over social media. The student council's executive cabinet then threw out the ban after discussing the importance of freedom of speech.

The U.S. flag was back on display in the student government offices lobby Monday.

For Greg Raths, the issue is personal. The Marine was on campus that same day, trying to educate students on the importance of displaying the stars and stripes on public facilities such as a university campus.

"The flag stands for freedom. It stands for the millions of people that fought for this country. And I was just very upset, along with a lot of my good friends, who are not just veterans, just citizens of this country," Raths said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.