ACLU sues for students to wear anti-Islam shirts

[teach1st]

http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=118474

10 Connects (WTSP, Tampa), 11/23

GAINESVILLE, Florida (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union has sued a north Florida school district. The lawsuit claims the Alachua County School District violated students' rights by not allowing them to wear T-shirts with an anti-Islamic message.

The civil rights organization says it doesn't agree with the "Islam is of the Devil," message printed on T-shirts distributed by the Dove World Outreach Center and worn by area school children. But the ACLU says it supports the students' constitutional right to freedom of speech.

The district, which did not return a phone call seeking comment from The Associated Press, has called the messages disruptive and a violation of the dress code.

[ck4829]

1. Watch out for right wing heads exploding

"Cognitive... dissonance... too... much!!!1111!"

[teach1st]

2. My thoughts, too! EOM

[ET Awful]

3. BOOOOM! What you've just heard was the sound of Freeper head explosions.

That said . . . wtf is a group that names itself after a symbol of peace (the dove) doing presenting such a shirt anyway? Frickin' hypocrites.

[LWolf]

4. When freedom of speech conflicts with

the separation of church and state, what gives?

"Islam is of the Devil" is a blatantly religious message. It doesn't belong at school.

[tonysam]

10. It's also disruptive

If there is a consistent policy against students wearing shirts with slogans, then I can't see any "free speech" issue here.

[LWolf]

12. We have that policy, which would take care of this problem. nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

14. What is it? No slogans, pictures or writing?

[LWolf]

17. No pictures or writing that can be interpreted as offensive. nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

18. That is still pretty wide open...is anyone takes offense they would have to ban it

We saw a lot of that kind of nonsense in the few years we had students in or taught at public high schools

[LWolf]

19. It is wide open.

It works in our K-8 school.

If nobody brings it up, it's not offensive. If somebody finds it offensive, the student doesn't wear it again.

The slogan in question here would be found offensive as soon as a student stepped onto school grounds.

It's loosely enforced.

But then again, we aren't trying to turn our campus into a battleground.

[atreides1]

5. So then

T-shirt's with the message "Jews Killed Christ", "Catholic Pedophile Society", "Jerry Falwell is Burning In Hell", would also be freedom of speech?

[Jim__]

6. Do you think students should be allowed to wear those shirts to school?

My first thought is that the T-shirts are disruptive and the school should be allowed to ban them. If not, can the school ban any messages on T-shirts worn to school?

[teach1st]

8. There is never absolute free speech at school...

..not for students, not for teachers. As a teacher, I like to err on the side of free speech. But religious rants are too disruptive for school. As a previous poster mentioned, I don't think a "Jews Killed Christ" shirt would be tolerated in many schools.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

13. Some allow affirmative slogans only, and then there was the Straight Pride

hoody fiasco. Asst Principal lost it after losing in court and cost the district even more.

If you are going to allow shirts with slogans, its a certainty that someone will be offended.

[Taverner]

7. Ahhh now that's my ACLU!

Honestly - even though I in no way support those fucking xenophobes who wear those shirts, you should have a right to

Just like I should be able to wear my "God is Dead" shirts

[tonysam]

9. I think the ACLU will lose on this one, however

Most schools don't allow any kind of shirts with messages on them because they are deemed disruptive.

[Taverner]

11. You are correct - they won't win. It is a distraction to education.

While the student may be within his rights to wear such a shirt, it IS a distraction to education, and on those grounds alone, he can (and should) be sent home.

Of course part of the value of the ACLU is not fighting for certain cases, but setting up precedents that are based on reason and logic, and not emotion.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

15. Thats a subjective standard, and given the zero tolerance/no judgement approach

to school administration, almost indefensible. No pictures/words/logos is about the only way to control this kind of thing.

[Taverner]

16. Hard to say whether thats a good idea or not

I've never liked Zero Tolerance Policies, because they beget authoritarianism

And after all, if you get kids to think - this may not be a bad thing