Ethics

9th Circuit Upholds School Dress Code

By Ed Brayton

And here's yet another case where the ACLU defended the rights of Christians to express their faith in school - and yet another case where the courts got it wrong on student speech (see full ruling here).

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that Clark County's school dress codes do not violate students' right to free speech after considering a case involving a junior suspended for wearing T-shirts expressing her religious faith.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the case in 2004 on behalf of Kimberly Jacobs, a Liberty High School student suspended five times for a total of 25 days for wearing shirts that violated the school's uniform policy.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt, who ruled in 2005 that uniform requirements do not infringe on students' rights. The panel supported the Clark County School District's policy it created to promote safety and create a positive school environment.

Full post as published by Dispatches from the Culture Wars on May 16, 2008 (boomark / email).