School Reverses Course Allowing Students to Wear Pro-Life Shirts

Livingston, CA—A public school reversed its position over students being allowed to wear pro-life shirts as a result of an administrative complaint filed by PJI attorneys on the pupils’ behalf. Two middle school students were admonished by school officials for wearing pro-life shirts. The shirts stated: (front) Help Cure Abortion (back) Abortion: The leading cause of death in America 1,200,000 every year. One student was pulled out of her classroom by two instructors and told that she is not to wear the shirt to school because it is “inappropriate.” She was then ordered to remove the t-shirt or turn it wrong side out, and cautioned that refusal to do so would result in her being sent home. Her sister, who also wore a pro-life shirt, was told by a teacher that a note was sent from the school office stating that the shirt must be removed. Facing discipline from the school, the pupils complied with the school’s demand.

In a letter from the school’s administration to PJI in response to the administrative complaint, the school stated that it concurred with PJI’s position that the students have a First Amendment right to wear the shirts in question. The letter goes on to state that school staff has been instructed not to take action against pupils wearing these or similar shirts. “We salute this school district’s willingness to quickly resolve this outrageous injustice to these two students,” said Brad Dacus, President of Pacific Justice Institute. “But even more importantly, we salute those students and their families for not allowing this injustice to continue.”
If you have questions about First Amendment rights of public school students, please contact PJI and request our publications on this topic. Also, if you are a student and believe your rights may have been violated, immediately notify the PJI legal department.

Poll question: Please visit our website, www.pacificjustice.org , to respond to our poll question: Should schools be allowed to censor student religious or political speech merely because someone finds it offensive?

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The Pacific Justice Institute is a non-profit 501(c)(3) legal defense organization specializing in
the defense of religious freedom, parental rights, and other civil liberties.
P.O. Box 276600
Sacramento, CA 95827-6600
Phone: (916) 857-6900 Fax (916) 857-6902
Internet: www.pacificjustice.org