Whether you agree with what someone’s voice or clothing says, they still have the right to express it.
A school district in North Texas is running into trouble with this idea after a student filed a lawsuit Thursday an incident last fall in which he was punished for wearing a John Edwards 2008 T-shirt, the Student Press Law Center reported. The Waxahachie Independent School District said the shirt violated its policy mandating all clothing must be plain without lettering unless promoting WISD clubs, organizations, sports and programs or colleges and universities.
Also last week, a case involving a religious anti-homosexuality shirt worn in a California high school made its way to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, though that school’s policies prohibited only speech that was negative or offensive.
As difficult as the idea may be for these school districts to accept, whether you agree with someone’s speech doesn’t make it any less free.
Throttling student expression is a step in the wrong direction. As individuals preparing to join the adult world, high school students must learn to deal with people they don’t agree with, even people who wear shirts that offend them or make demonstrations that anger them. Hiding the shirts won’t make the issues go away, they’ll only force the conflict out of the academic setting and further stifle dialogue.
It’s OK to be angry about what people say. We call to mind the demonstrations by the Sierra Club and UH Students Against Sweatshops on campus last week, or the visiting preachers from Soulwinners Ministries the week before. Our Web site and inbox have been well-stocked with responses of disagreement, and even anger, toward these groups.
But the same laws that let them demonstrate and speak publicly allow respondents to do the same. Individuals are free to be angry, saddened or upset by these groups’ messages, but they should never deny them the right to say them, here or anywhere.
Universities are often thought of as centers of expression and free speech, but every facet of American society should be open to dialogue and belief – political, religious or otherwise. Though free speech may not help high school students prepare for the TAKS test, it will help them think for themselves, consider why they cherish certain beliefs more than others and to prepare for life in the adult world where people disagree with you and have the right to show it.
