Several parents in Sanborn contacted me regarding a student meeting for the sophomore class at Sanborn High school. Parents said that their children came home telling them that a student questioned the dress code and asked if students can wear a Trump shirt to school. It was then reported that the new assistant principal, Sean Walker, said he’d “advise against it.” Parents questioned if the district had a right to deny the students their free speech rights.
I called Mr. Walker on Friday to ask him what he meant by this statement. While he was not telling the student to refrain from wearing the shirt, a shirt like that could offend other students.
Legal Background on Student Speech:
**Tinker v. Des Moines (1969): The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that students do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.” Schools can restrict expression only if it would cause a material and substantial disruption of school operations or infringe on the rights of others.
**Political speech (like wearing a shirt supporting or opposing a president) is among the most protected forms of expression.
**Subsequent rulings (e.g., Bethel v. Fraser, Morse v. Frederick) narrowed some types of speech, but political shirts are typically allowed unless they contain profanity, threats, or incitement.
Sometimes this will boil down to what the district has for their dress code in school policy. Would it be a violation of school policy to wear a shirt with the name and/or face of the President of the United States? No, and Mr. Walker said that he was not instructing the student not to wear the t-shirt.
Here is what the dress code says:
While Mr. Walker said he was not restricting the student from wearing the shirt, some of the students might have thought that they were not permitted. It’s always good to check the school policy.
It was just a few years ago that the Principal in Epping had to issue an apology to a student for telling her to cover up her Trump t-shirt at school. I’m going to guess that some attorney set him straight about a potential lawsuit.
See : https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/epping-high-school-principal-apologizes-trump-shirt-brian-ernest/
Parents are right to ask for clarification. Courts have held schools accountable for viewpoint discrimination. Conservative and religious students across the country have reported that their views are treated with hostility, so they remain silent. Maybe a better response would have been to say that if the shirt follows school policy we will defend your right to self expression. This is a time when civility should be taught and for students to learn their Constitutional rights. They need to hear from school officials that their rights will be respected, even from those who disagree with them.
If students hear that their teachers and administrators will stand by a student’s right to their personal beliefs, and let the other students know that they need to respect differing views, maybe we can get back to teaching civility to the younger generation.
