Title IX’s Demise in the Public School System
Title IX is a 1972 federal law which requires gender equity for boys and girls in every educational program that receives federal funding. This includes the vast majority of public school systems in our country.
Title IX prohibits both teacher-student harassment and student-student harassment. It also prohibits a hostile environment based on gender. The goal is to eliminate sex-based discrimination in federally assisted education programs. Every public school has an affirmative obligation to prevent sex-based harassment and to lessen the harm to students if, despite ...
Boobie Bracelet Battle Continues
Easton, Pennsylvania school officials announced earlier today that they will continue the tax payer funded battle against bracelets that say "I ♥ Boobies!"
The District's school board voted unanimously Wednesday to appeal Tuesday's adverse decision by federal District Judge Mary McLaughlin.
District solicitor John Freund says the decision "undermines the authority of school officials to promote civil dialogue and maintain decorum in the schools."
Court Reverses Boobies Bracelets Ban
A federal court in Pennsylvania ruled today that school-imposed bans of The Keep A Breast Foundation's "I ♥ Boobies" bracelets are unconstitutional and violate students' First Amendment rights. Two middle school students, with ties to breast cancer victims and survivors, were plaintiffs in the free expression case after being banned by the Easton Area School District from wearing the bracelets.
In the official ruling, Judge Mary McLaughlin stated, "The bracelets are intended to be -- and they can reasonably be -- viewed as speech designed to raise awareness of ...
Middle School Boobies
Once again, America's finest school administrators have decided to attack student speech by banning the wearing of pink bracelets to promote breast cancer awareness that are emblazoned with the phrase "I [heart] Boobies." And once again, these people seem to be concentrated in the great state of Pennsylvania.
In the first case to challenge such a ban, two girls attending an Easton, Pennsylvania, middle school contend they have the right to engage in silent speech about breast cancer in a way that will be relevant and engaging to their peers.
According to the Legal ...
Constitution Cannot Keep Special Ed Students in School
In a recent little noticed unpublished First Circuit decision, former USSC Justice Souter held that "whatever the scope of a school’s responsibility towards its students . . . there is no apparent constitutional obligation to impose physical restraint upon teenagers not at immediate risk of harm to themselves or others."
This case was brought by mothers of teenagers who were not physically restrained by school officials from leaving their schools during instructional hours. The mothers brought action under state law as well as 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and § 1988 seeking ...