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Mich. court rules student's anti-Bush shirt is protected speech
Judge rejects argument that schools are an inappropriate venue for political speech
© 2003 Student Press Law Center
October 3, 2003
MICHIGAN –– A federal judge ruled Tuesday that
a Dearborn High School student has the right to wear a T-shirt with a picture of
President George W. Bush’s face and the caption “International
Terrorist” on school grounds.
“This case reaffirms
students’ rights to speak out and emphasizes that school districts will be
liable if they attempt to unconstitutionally censor students,” said
Michael J. Steinberg, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of
Michigan.
The ACLU of Michigan filed a lawsuit in March on behalf of
Bretton Barber, 17, claiming the Dearborn Public Schools violated his First
Amendment rights when administrators asked him to conceal his T-shirt. The
hearing on the motion for a preliminary injunction was held Sept. 17. In the
lawsuit, the ACLU and Barber are seeking unspecified damages and attorneys fees.
U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Duggan granted the preliminary injunction
stating that the school district failed to show evidence the “T-shirt
created any disturbance or disruption.”
Duggan also rejected the
school district’s claim that school grounds are an inappropriate venue for
political speech.
“In fact, as [the courts] have emphasized,
students benefit when school officials provide an environment where they can
openly express their diverging viewpoints and when they learn to tolerate the
opinions of others,” Duggan wrote.
Representatives from the
school district did not return phone calls seeking comment.
The case
began Feb. 17 when Barber, then 16, wore the T-shirt to his English class to
present a “compare and contrast” essay. Barber chose to compare
Bush to Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi leader. School administrators asked
him turn the T-shirt inside out, take it off or go home. Barber went
home.
Steinberg said Tuesday’s ruling follows the Supreme
Court’s 1969 landmark decision in Tinker v. Des Moines Community School
District. In that decision, the court ruled that public school students,
“do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or
expression at the schoolhouse gates.”
Steinberg added that
Duggan’s ruling that students benefit from openly expressing their
opinions is important to high school students across the
country.
“It’s saying students may express themselves on
matters of public importance,” Steinberg said.
For More Information: Barber v. Dearborn Public Schools and Judith Coebly, Case No. 03-CV-71222-DT (E.D. Mich. Sept. 30, 2003).
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