US: 68-year-old arrested after complaining that student was allowed to wear anti-gay t-shirt
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So – a student who wears an anti-gay t-shirt is protected by the first amendment. Do they extend the same protection to anyone wearing a pro-gay shirt?
They should do. And they probably do.
Yes.. They do.. In fact, I’ve read more cases of schools trying to block pro-gay shirts than anti.. I guess fair is fair, but I wonder if they would truly permit racist t-shirts under the free speech argument.
Yes, the same principles apply. Look up the organization that intervened on the student’s behalf – the ACLU. They’ve helped countless gay kids whose rights have been infringed by schools. They’re more commonly associated with liberal, pro-gay causes, but as this case shows they also defend the right of people to say things they find offensive. It’s also worth pointing out that the director of the ACLU is an out gay man.
Would a student be allowed to wear a tshirt with a Star of David and a slashmark through it? Or the Christian fish with a slashmark. How about a stick figure woman with a slashmark?
Why not?
We really need to pick our fights better than this. The student wearing that shirt did more to show how gay people are harassed and discriminated against, than anyone else on that day.
He did us a favour although it wasn’t his intention.
This old man was foolish to protest in this way, lying to gain access to a school is a stupid thing to do.
At least he tried.
Twitless by name…twitless by nature! At least this ‘old man’ had the guts to stand up for something he believed in. I don’t think we get to choose our battles, hate is hate.
Irony lost on you then. You don’t think I chose the name well. Still at least you didn’t do the time worn witless.
I stand by everything I say. Try and think about it for a bit.
You really think a lone, old man lying to gain access to the wrong school full of kids is clever?
Well why don’t the other students wear pro-gay shirts and send a message right back?
Nothing stopping them.
Presumably, in such a religiously-inspired homophobic country, they would be branded as gay themselves … and … probably burned at the stake? For ‘The Land of the Free’, there’s certainly a huge bias towards religious rights over human ones. In their derranged quest to preserve free speech (and gun ownership – but don’t let’s go there …) at all costs, they will allow the wearing of an anti-gay T Shirt but ban someone from protesting against that! Mental.
What a BRAVE guy! He deserves a medal – not punishment. ONLY in the States could such lunacy happen. HE is arrested but the wearer of the anti-gay T Shirts has HIS rights protected?! The USA really is one weird place ….
I like your thinking Truth.
Thanks mcshaney :)
I lived in the States for five years. I became increasingly aware of what a schizophrenic culture it is. Many American families will happily sit and watch an Arnold Swartzenegger movie in which he blows people to pieces with machine guns. But you show two guys kissing … !!!!!! Jeeez! Seems they are immune to violence and murder but totally screwed up about sex. I wonder where we can hang the blame for that? Oh yes! That would be war-mongering, sexually-repressive ‘religion’.
He is brave, and I was reading that thinking how proud I would be if it were someone in my family (grandpa?). At the same time though, he did lie to get into one school, and wouldn’t leave another. So he took it one step too far. Still, I like his dedication.
I want to know if the ACLU would let an employee wear this same T-shirt in their workplace. If it’s free speech in a public school it should be free speech in the ACLU offices.
Sometimes freedom of speech can really suck. But, if someone wants to walk around looking like the world’s largest bigot then who am I to stop them?
I agree. Freedom of speech is a curse as well as a blessing. But at the same time, look at the reaction to the tshirt. It has brought awareness and sometimes the speech which we disagree with the most, makes the best argument FOR our cause.
So a “Well Dressed Elderly Gentleman” couldn’t get into a school, but some nutter with an AR-15 manages to walk straight into one and kill over 20 people. Is it just me, or are they getting their priorities slightly mixed up?
The Newtown shooter didn’t just walk in, you know – he shot his way through a locked door.
Shh! It spoils the analogy!! Don’t you learn ANYTHING from Religious groups??
*Oh, satire!*
Anti-gay activist have also been arrested for doing stuff like this – it happened to one of Brian Camenker’s minions in Massachusetts. You can’t just walk into a school and make a scene, especially not after the shooting in Newtown.