The three students have since graduated, but a federal appeals court in San Francisco on Thursday was set to consider their lawsuit alleging the school violated their free speech and equal protections rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. A decision in the students’ favor could restrict how broadly schools are able to limit student speech on the grounds that it’s offensive.
Racial tensions and gang problems were plaguing a Northern California high school when three students arrived for classes in 2010 wearing American flag T-shirts on Cinco de Mayo.
Unpleasant verbal exchanges and altercations marked the previous year’s Cinco de Mayo celebrations at Live Oak High School in Morgan Hill, 20 miles south of San Jose. So when students told administrators that trouble was a possibility because of the American flag attire, the students were ordered to turn their shirts inside out or go home.
They went home, and the incident sparked a national debate, prompting satellite news trucks to camp outside the school for several days afterward as well-known pundits across the political spectrum argued about the issue over the airwaves. Cinco de Mayo is observed by some as a celebration of Mexican heritage.
The three students have since graduated, but a federal appeals court in San Francisco on Thursday was set to consider their lawsuit alleging the school violated their free speech and equal protections rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. A decision in the students’ favor could restrict how broadly schools are able to limit student speech on the grounds that it’s offensive.
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