Anna Amador, the mother of a seventh grader at McSwain Elementary School in Merced, Calif. is taking legal action after her daughter was forced to remove a pro-life t-shirt she wore to school for National Pro-life T-Shirt Day in April 2008, according to a recent
article. The shirt features two graphic images of a fetus in the womb with the word "growing" under them. Next to those images, there is a blank black square, captioned "gone."
The complaint alleges that the school principal, assistant principal and office clerk mistreated the child, allegedly forcing her to throw away her breakfast, dragging her away from the cafeteria, berating her, and demanding that she remove her shirt. Amador states that her daughter was humiliated in front of her classmates, none of whom were offended by the girl's shirt.
According to the complaint, the office clerk, forcibly dragged the girl to the principal's office, where she was told never to wear such a shirt again. The shirt was not returned to her until the end of the day.
District officials argue that not all of Amador's allegations are valid, but they do not deny that the girl was forced to remove her shirt. The district asserts that this particular shirt is not permissible under the dress code, which does not allow clothing that promotes "inappropriate subject matter" like tobacco, drug or alcohol use, sexual promiscuity, profanity or vulgarity.
Amador counterargues that the school applies this dress code subjectively and the pictures on her daughter's shirt can be found in school science textbooks.
Considering that McSwain houses grades kindergarten through 8, perhaps Amador doesn't have as strong an argument as she expected, as some forms of speech are seen as detrimental to younger kids. However, William Becker, Amador's lawyer, argues that there is nothing detrimental about the message on the young girl's shirt.
"The message of the T-shirt is that life is sacred," says Becker, a First Amendment attorney. "One would be very hard pressed to find anything wrong with that particular idea, except that some people do object to the political message."
Do you think it's okay for kids to be billboards for causes that they may or may not understand, pro-life or otherwise, in school? Do school officials have the right to demand that such clothing be removed?
Comments (81)
Ummm...the one in your picture doesn't look that bad. It doesn't look like it shows a "graphic" picture, so in my opinion, she should have been allowed to keep wearing it at school. She would only have to remove it, if it was too graphic and distracting for other students to learn.
I kind of wonder about the rest of the case, though. Usually, those allegations of "being dragged, etc." to the office are not true. Most teachers/administration wouldn't do that, so maybe we're not getting the full story...
I think that if there were kindergarteners in school with her, then the shirt was too graphic (in terms of images only). The message is perfectly fine, since she is promoting a political cause. The way that they went about it, if what her mother claims is true, is appalling.
Unfortunately, I've been told many times by many different people that one's right to free speech ends when you walk onto school property. It's a disgusting idea and I'm quite thankful to be out of public school now.
i thaynk such shurtz ar protektid by the furst amendment & if not they shud be
I've seen kids wear shirts that have profanity on them in my school, shirts that have sexual messages, etc. etc. I think that if I can wear a shirt that supports a company ( i.e. Abercrombie), I should be able to wear a shirt that supports life. My friend has a shirt from www.abort73.com that says 'would it bother us if they used a gun?" and I've heard teachers get after her for wearing it. They haven't actually done anything about it, but still. Wrong. If they want to have such a standerd, it should be upheld for everyone, with every type of shirt that promotes something. But thats just my opinion :)
She has the right to wear the shirt whether anyone else likes it or not. Tinker V DesMiones (1969) says that a students right to free speech including symbolic speech (wearing certain clothes) doesn't end once they enter school.
First, I doubt that she was really all that "humiliated" by the school's staff. Kids tend to exaggerate things. Second, she's what 13? Does she even understand the difference between pro-life and pro-choice? Does she understand what abortion is? Third, I don't see a problem with kids wearing pro-life t-shirts that say things like "I'm pro-life, how about you?" Or something simple to ge the message out there, but saying things like "Would it bother you if they used a gun?" or having pictures on the shirt are just a tad over the top. Just with every other child that gets in trouble for wearing shirts that have cussing or other controversal sayings Pro-life shirts should be monitored as well.
This doesn't surprise me a bit. But then of course I was also the kind of kid who got picked on by teachers as well as classmates. It certainly does happen if you have the misfortune to push the right buttons. Teachers and administrators are as human as the next person (for good or otherwise).
This article tells a similar story of a very smart 14-year-old girl who wore political t-shirts to school during the last election but made a sociological experiment out of it. Turns out that those who preach tolerance can be very intolerant.
Mm well...is it all right if a child wears a shirt proclaiming that people against gay marriage are discriminatory bigots?
By definition, it is true, and if all simple facts can be presented on shirts, then that should be just as okay to wear as the pro-life shirt is.
It's kind of obvious that the description of what happened is exaggerated, anyways. It's repeatedly stated that the student was "dragged," when...I'm pretty sure she wasn't held by the collar and dragged on the ground. They would have had a stronger case then. Forced to throw away her breakfast?? Oh no. You realize this could have meant:
"Katie, I want to see you in my office right now. Leave your things here."
"Berating" is also a vague term. It could mean reprimanding, chastising, or cussing out. In general, it just seems like certain words were chosen to exaggerate the situation.
When will the maddness stop?
Yes, she should be allowed to wear it, but so should the kids who want to wear pro choice shirts. Pro choice shirts would have caused a bigger stir without any of the pictures. They would have no reason to make someone take it off but they still would. So I am glad to see that they were fair in that aspect.
And she is in grade school still, she probably wore the shirt expecting there to be drama. And what mother would actually buy or allow her young teen daughter to wear a shirt like that? She should not even be thinking about sex yet, let alone procreating.
If it had vulgar images, then that's the policy. She has to abide by it. Would have been more interesting if the shirt had no pictures and they told her to take it off.
First of all, I am ardently and actively pro life. This story was reported on Foxs News last night (& probably other stations as well), and no mention was made of the child being dragged, humiliated, or deprived of breakfast. The school dress code forbids certain messages such as illegal activity, & profanity, and also any shirt that could cause disruption in the classroom. This student has been permitted to wear pro life shirts in the past. Let's face it, abortion is a hot button issue--there is absolutely a realistic chance that the shirt would spark arguments during any given class. The images are beautiful--and also could be distracting during class. And, on the flip side, how would pro life students react if a student wore a pro choice shirt. Classrooms are not political arenas. The primary purpose of school is education. There are extra curricular organizations such as debate clubs where such attire could be permitted--even encouraged. But when my children were in school, I wanted them to be able to concentrate on reading, writing, and arithmetic without any extraneous interferences. It's hard enough for our kids to get a decent education these days without all of the various politically motivated groups trying to get into the middle of the curriculum.
@kyleberg29@xanga - The shirt has nothing to do with teens having sex.
the shirt had pictures, but it was nothing inappropriate, or that could not be found in most high school science books. It was not a picture of aborted babies, or anything too graphic for any person of any age to see.
The shirt also did not bash any opposing viewpoint, it simply stated that it was a Pro-Life T-shirt and that's it. Noone was insulted by the pictures or the words on the shirt. It was purely a political statement, nothing else.
I wonder if they treated people who wore McCain/Obama campaign shirts the same way? It falls under the same category.
@Pass_the_Aura@xanga - Thanks for the link to a great story. The bottom line is that politics ought to be kept out of the classroom unless it is a political course, such as civics or polysci. I'm sick of adults trying to inject their personal agendas into the curriculum. The three Rs, man, that's what we have lost sight of. And our academic standing in the world proves how much we have damaged our kids in the process.
i am pro-choice, but i feel the school was wrong in what they did. "The district asserts that this particular shirt is not permissible under the dress code, which does not allow clothing that promotes "inappropriate subject matter" like tobacco, drug or alcohol use, sexual promiscuity, profanity or vulgarity. " that shirt does not promote tobacco, drug or alcohol use, sexual promiscuity, profanity, and i would like to know what the school calls vulgar. i don't see anything vulgar about the shirt. the back says "national pro-life day", and the front is nothing but logic. in addition, the same pics can be found in school books, as the kid said.
@Amythist_Malaise@xanga - I didn't really say teens in general, I said her, the one who wore the pro life shirt. What do you think the thought process was to get to her decision for being pro life? Think she left out the part about having sex? I never said she was having sex, I said she should not be thinking about sex.
I'm pretty sure a majority of kids that age are pro life anyway, it's not like they truly understand what they are saying, they just know that they are"doing good by sticking up for all the babies that don't have voices."
@kyleberg29@xanga - You are probably correct.
@kyleberg29@xanga - The girl is 13, not 3. Kids that age are perfectly capable of understanding the abortion issue and having their own opinion about it. As for "shouldn't be thinking about sex," hello, puberty?
The shirt in question was clearly intended to be provocative and therefore disruptive in school.
@transvestite_rabbit@xanga - You think 13 is perfectly capable of understanding abortion issues? Girls that age are barely capable of understanding much of anything if it does not include a Hannah Montana sticker. These kids are still worried about who's going to the dance with who and what the cafeteria is serving for lunch. And since when did puberty = sex? When a child enters puberty that means they are capable of sexual reproduction. In no way does that imply that they should have sex. Some kids get thrust into a position that they need to think about pro life or pro choice because they made a stupid decision to have sex at such a young age.
this shirt doesn't look too bad.. it really doesn't but i think it's part of having schools that say
you can't wear certain things.. certain rules and regulations that kids have to follow by
@kyleberg29@xanga - Just because one is 13 does not make one a blubbering idiot anymore than being 31 makes one intelligent. I understood the abortion debate at 13, and I'm sure many others do as well. It's the adults that try to make it more complicated than it needs to be.
Just because they are preoccupied with school dances and cafeteria food doesn't mean they are incapable of deep thinking. As if adults aren't often preoccupied with getting laid or what to cook for dinner.
I don't see how small pictures of developing fetuses would be detrimental to any age group. The proposition that it would scar kindergarteners is preposterous. If her t-shirt had threatened pro-choicers or even called them names or had actual disturbing pictures I would have to agree with the school. And if they don't want any clothing that might distract the students they need to make everyone wear school assigned potato sacks because even in my high school, where we wore strict uniforms, you could still get "distracted" by someone's clothes.
However, I find it moderately ridiculous that the mother is wasting time, money, and other resources on this case when truly heinous crimes are committed every day with less fanfare for the victims.
@kyleberg29@xanga - You have a extremely limited view of the capabilities of young teens, bordering on contempt. I am the parent of a 12 year old girl. She is capable of grasping complex issues, absorbing information and contrasting views, and developing opinions. And she has no interest whatsoever in Hannah Montana stickers.
I NEVER said kids should start having sex when they reach puberty. I said they are THINKING about sex, which you claimed they should not be doing. And they are certainly developing their beliefs and values about sexuality (and everything else) at that age.
i thought the shirt was going to have more graphic post-abortion pictures, which i understand may be viewed as inappropriate. but i see nothing wrong with the one she's wearing, and she should be allowed to wear it.
although i disagree with the "similar pictures exist in textbooks" argument. you can probably find pictures of genitalia, naked people, and marijuana plants in textbooks, too. health class, anyone?