A middle school student’s father is suing his child’s school after the boy was forced to turn his T-shirt inside out. The student wore a shirt that said “Abortion is not Healthcare.”
According to USA Today , the boy wore the shirt without incident until his fifth period teacher sent him to the principal’s office. He was then ordered to turn the shirt inside out for fear of offending other students.
The boy’s father, William Boyer of New Cumberland, Pa., filed suit on Oct. 5 against the West Shore School District, alleging that school officials unfairly censored his son. The T-shirt represented political speech, which is the most protected form of speech even inside schools, Valerie Burch, a staff attorney with the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, told USA Today.
Meanwhile, in Patterson, Calif., a 10-year-old was forced to remove a shirt that showed a picture of President Obama and the words “Hi Haters” on it.
According to the school’s Assistant Superintendent Philip Alfano, the T-shirt didn’t violate the dress code directly, but the word “hate” was the issue.
The student had worn the shirt several times this school year without incident.
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