My daughter was one of the Miller students who organized the climate rally downtown Oct. 2. She and several of her friends are passionate about this issue and spent days organizing the event. They assembled on their own at Buckley Park and then spontaneously marched down Main Avenue. Myself and a handful of parents showed up to cheer them on, along with two amazing teachers.

It is my understanding that during their peaceful march, they gathered in front of Top That to express their opinions. A couple of them were distressed by the clearly displayed political views of the business, which are in contrast to what the kids were marching for, and some made inappropriate gestures.

A Miller teacher has somehow been implicated in organizing and leading the event, and is being held responsible and reprimanded. The teacher had nothing to do with organizing the event and was not responsible for the behavior of those few students who let their emotions get the best of them. The teacher was just there as a proud, loving community member wanting to show support for students.

The rapid action taken by the school superintendent to place the teacher on administrative leave before knowing all the facts is not acceptable. I hope the school board will consider swift reversal of the superintendent’s decision and return the teacher to class immediately.

Chris ChambersDurango