Federal Court Rules Against Homophobic T-Shirt

A federal judge ruled that officials from the Poway school district near San Diego did not violate the First Amendment rights of a student they punished for wearing a homophobic T-shirt to class.

Tyler Chase Harper sued the school district in 2004, arguing that his rights were violated when he was removed from class for wearing the antigay shirt on the Day of Silence, which is intended to promote tolerance of gays and lesbians. The shirt read "I Will Not Accept What God Has Condemned” on one side and "Homosexuality Is Shameful, Romans 1:27” on the other side.

The next day, he wore the same shirt, but it had been altered to read, "Be Ashamed [of What] Our School Has Embraced." School administrators asked him to remove his shirt on the second day because they said it violated their dress code, which bans promotion of "violent or hateful behavior."

Harper refused, and he was removed from class and assigned to the front office to complete his day's remaining schoolwork.

"The main point of the case is free speech, and students have their right to be heard on campus," Kevin Theriot, one of Harper's attorneys, told The Advocate in May. "Just because other students don't agree, doesn't mean that he can't voice [his opinions]."

The case made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which eventually nullified it because at that point Harper had already graduated from high school. His sister Kelsie then took his place in the case, where it is now. When her brother first went to the federal court, he won.

On Tuesday, U.S. district judge John Houston overturned the court's earlier decision. Houston decided not to issue an injunction to stop the district from enforcing the policy in 2006. A year later, he threw out the case against the district. The ninth U.S. circuit court of appeals agreed with Houston's decision not to issue an injunction, according to TheSan Diego Union-Tribune.

Houston wrote Tuesday that Poway school district's "interest in protecting homosexual students from harassment is a legitimate pedagogical concern that allows a school to restrict speech expressing damaging statements about sexual orientation and limiting students to expressing their views in a positive manner."

Free-speech advocates and the Harpers' legal team are distraught over the decision, which states that school districts are within their rights to protect students by limiting freedom of expression. David Blair-Loy, the legal director for San Diego and Imperial County American Civil Liberties Union, told the newspaper that the ruling is troubling. The organization filed a friend-of-the-court brief on the student's behalf, siding with religious groups they normally argue against.

“And let's face it: What about high school is not psychologically damaging?” Blair-Loy said in the article. “This student wore a T-shirt that expressed an idea. It's an idea we don't agree with at the ACLU, but that is the essence of free speech. It's not just for ideas you like.” (The Advocate)