Hundreds of high school students in Jefferson County, Colo., protested last week against a school board proposal to omit narratives of civil disobedience from United States history classes.

The board, with three of five members identifying as conservative, proposed a curriculum that would promote patriotism, civic duty and capitalism while reducing emphasis on protest and civil disobedience.

Public backlash against the proposed curriculum began two weeks ago, when more than 50 Jefferson County teachers took Friday off, many of them citing illness as the reason for their inability to attend work which resulted in canceled classes.

On Wednesday, more than 700 students walked out of their classes. Many of them took to the streets with signs proclaiming that the right to protest is distinctly American.

Five days into the student protests, even parents had joined the movement. In addition to their disapproval of the proposed curriculum changes, some cited concerns about the efficiency of using student evaluations to determine whether instructors should be given raises.

We support the people of Jefferson County for taking a stand against the proposed censorship of U.S. history. It has become commonplace to see young people “participating” in online protests or petitions. However, these students’ real-world actions are evidence of a far greater commitment to a political cause, and we feel that their display of civil disobedience is entirely in keeping with American values.