You know it’s over the top when even the ACLU is defending a student who was prohibited from wearing a pro-border wall t-shirt to school.
A judge agreed and granted a restraining order to Addison Barnes who filed a lawsuit earlier this month. He felt his constitutional right to free speech was being infringed upon. He’s correct!
A US District Court Judge granted a temporary restraining order Tuesday, allowing a Hillsboro student to wear his pro-Border Wall T-shirt to school — for now at least.
Addison Barnes filed a lawsuit earlier this month, claiming officials at Liberty High School infringed on his constitutional rights by asking him to either leave class or cover up his T-shirt, which read: “Donald J. Trump Border Wall Construction Co. – The Wall Just Got 10 Feet Taller.”
Barnes wore the T-shirt earlier this year in a People and Politics class at Liberty High School in Hillsboro. He was taken out of his classroom by the school’s assistant principal, who told him his shirt offended at least one student and the teacher.
The boy was given a choice — either cover the shirt, or leave the school. He briefly covered the shirt and went back to class, but then, believing his First Amendment rights were being violated, uncovered the shirt.
The school’s assistant principal then sent a security guard to remove Barnes from class. His absence was counted as a suspension.
Bring back civil discussion and our first amendment rights!
The ACLU weighed in on this case:
Mat dos Santos, legal director of the ACLU of Oregon, issued the following statement:
“The school clearly crossed the line when it required a student to remove a T-shirt that voiced support for Donald Trump’s border wall or face a suspension. This shirt is mean-spirited, but it isn’t a ‘disturbance’ under First Amendment case law.
“It is disappointing that Liberty High School decided to censor the student instead of inviting the student body to discuss immigration, the freedom of speech, and the impacts of xenophobic rhetoric. Schools have a responsibility to teach our youth how to engage in thoughtful conversations about difficult and potentially offensive subject matters. Censorship doesn’t work and often just elevates the subject the government is trying to silence.”
