Posted on 06/29/2007 7:38:41 AM PDT by Sub-Driver
Court allows student's anti-Bush T-shirt
15 minutes ago
Putting its recent ruling on student speech into practice, the Supreme Court on Friday rejected a school district's appeal of a ruling that it violated a student's rights by censoring his anti-Bush T-shirt.
A seventh-grader from Vermont was suspended for wearing a shirt that bore images of cocaine and a martini glass — but also had messages calling President Bush a lying drunk driver who abused cocaine and marijuana, and the "chicken-hawk-in-chief" who was engaged in a "world domination tour."
After his suspension, Zachary Guiles returned to school with duct tape covering the offending images.
Williamstown Middle School Principal Kathleen Morris-Kortz said the images violated the school dress code, which prohibits clothing that promotes the use of drugs or alcohol.
An appeals court said the school had no right to censor any part of the shirt.
On Monday, the court said schools could regulate student expression if it advocated illegal drug use. Justice Samuel Alito cautioned that schools could not censor political speech.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
No, but the content of the messages of said t-shirts can reflect that change has taken place, thus the point that your comments on current trends is irrelevant to the larger issue at hand.
Use the N--word, you lose your job.
If Bush is the target, hate speech is permissible.
Now if Bush were black could he be called a dumb a$$ N?
Yep. You’re right.
My point is this: The kid did it, and the court said he was within his rights to do so. It was his choice to do it that I fault.
Bad judgement probably equals lousy parenting.
‘No, but the content of the messages of said t-shirts can reflect that change has taken place, thus the point that your comments on current trends is irrelevant to the larger issue at hand.’
You disagree, and my view is ‘irrelevant’?
How egotistical of you!
(chuckle)
We’re done.
Agreed.
okay
Hey I don’t have a problem as long as it cuts both way.. an pro Bush or pro Iraq on anti Gore or anti global warming bs t shirts are allowed
Hey I don’t have a problem as long as it cuts both way.. an pro Bush or pro Iraq on anti Gore or anti global warming bs t shirts are allowed
“This student was not in school, not on school property, and not doing anything illegal.”
He was not AT school but he was IN school. Students were allowed to go to the parade and NOT marked absent because it was a school sanctioned release from class but NOT from being under the authority of the school.
We were allowed the same release when G.H.W. Bush was giving a speech in my town. We were not counted absent if we went. Two guys decided they would get drunk on the way to the speech. A teacher saw them stumbling around at the event and confronted them. They were both suspended from school. Not only did the parents NOT sue, the guy I knew well got grounded for a month.
The court rightfully decided this incident fell under the jurisdiction of the school. No different than a field trip. Schools are under federal mandate to oppose illegal drug use. Promoting illegal drug use while at a school sanctioned event, no matter where it is located, is contradictory to that and is NOT protected speech. Even the court said the “Bong Hits” is what got him. According to the court, had the sign not promoted illegal drug use, there would have been no issue.
All the other kid did was wear a goofy t-shirt. If the school had a uniform regulation and the kid broke that, it would be a different story.
You might think it’s a good idea to let the inmates run the asylum but fortunately the USSC disagrees with you.
The schools have millions of employees...aids, teachers, administrators.
Some of them will make a bad call from time to time, as happened with your daughter.
Yep. None of them elected and all of them with little accountability.
You APPEAL IT...but not with a lawyer, as your daughter did. Sounds like she did a good job.
Yep, and thank you. Both of my daughters are awesome young ladies. Mrs Mag, God and I did some great work there.
At work we called it "escalating!" If someone makes a seriously flawed call, you escalate their butts. You don't hire a freakin' lawyer to sue
Escalation is what we would have done if she hadn't been satisfied. Not escalating their butts as you meant but escalating the level of response. I would have been the next level, but not the final one. I don't have quite as much pull as the schools think I do, but I have some. Not everyone has the connections I am believed to have, or even what I actually have.
If you daughter had not been successful, you might have had to go in for a chit-chat. Occasionally, you may even have to appeal to the schoolboard.
Or higher.
Sometimes you will hit a brickwall.
They may have. If you do, you ask yourself "Is this hill worth dying on?" If you answer "yes", you keep going.
It is an INSANE solution to this little social friction to deny the teachers and administators on the firing line the authority to call these shots.
I don't think this would deny their authority so much as it is denying their right to be wrong with impunity.
A big problem should be solved at schoolboard election time.
Absolutely. Or better, take the schools away from the government, altogether.
My my.
"disrespect... viciously all the time"
Time for someone out there to post the list of some of things we should damn well be mighty grateful for that "this president" had done =- and just maybe reflect on how it could've been and could be now if jSkerry or AlBore had been the leader the past 7 years....
It seems we demand our leaders be 110% right on all the issues = at least come down on our side of them each and every time - even though in a room of 10 of us, I would guess that would probably be about 4 different ways
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