by Bob Walsh
This
is one of those cases where the facts are not really in question. Four
years ago Brandi Levy had just tried out for the varsity cheerleading
squad at Mahanoy Area High School in Pennsylvania. She got passed over,
still relegated to the JV squad. She was pissed.
So,
on a Saturday (not school day), while at a convenience store (not on
school grounds) the 14-year old pulled out her cell phone and unloaded.
Her snapchat video included her flipping the bird into the camera and a
little bit of vulgarity. She expressed some level of unhappiness with
pretty much everything. No threats of violence, nothing nasty about any
one person. As "punishment" the school vanished her from the
cheerleading squad for a year.
Next week SCOTUS is going to hear the case of just how far constitutional rights to free speech go.
The
Third Circuit Court has already heard the case, and sided with Ms.
Levy. The school appealed, and SCOTUS agreed to hear the case. Thus
far the Harris-Biden administration is supporting the school (huge
surprise there....not) making a vague assertion that her tirade somehow
threatened the smooth operation of the school.
The original lawsuit resulted in the judge ordering the school to reinstate her on the squad.
The
precedent being looked at, Tinker v. DesMoines Independent Community
School District, is from 1969. It is not clear if that precedent also
restricts off-campus speach. That is what this case will address. The
ACLU, which is representing Ms. Levy, asserts that allowing school
administrators to "police" student speach anywhere on the planet is a
bridge too far.
1 comment:
I remember getting in a fight after school in the 6th grade. We made sure we weren't on school grounds so we wouldn't get in trouble. Several kids witnessed our pugilistic abilities for a few minutes until the Principal showed up and took us to his office. Once there, a couple of male teachers came in and witnessed the paddling we received. The Principal told us that when we left school grounds, he was still responsible for us until we arrived home. I told him I didn't think that was right and nearly got another beating. When I got home, my Dad said, "I heard you been fighting and got in trouble at school." I replied, "Yes, Sir." Nothing else was said.
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