On The Front Lines
First Amendment Victory: Mass. School Agrees to Settle Free Speech Lawsuit and Amend Policies to Protect Conservative Student Expression
BOSTON, Mass. -- School officials at a Massachusetts high school have agreed to settle a lawsuit over the school's alleged censorship of conservative political posters. The lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court by attorneys for The Rutherford Institute, charged that officials at Hudson High School violated the First Amendment rights of students Christopher Bowler and James Milello when they censored their Conservative Club posters and discriminated against them on the basis of the club's conservative political viewpoint.
In settling the lawsuit, school officials have agreed to amend school policies to forbid censorship of student expression on the basis of political viewpoint. Hudson High School is one of eleven pilot schools in the U.S. that participate in a "First Amendment Schools" program. The program, launched by the First Amendment Center, seeks to recognize schools that teach and practice democratic freedom and citizenship.
"In our politically correct age, this case presents an important lesson about what tolerance really means, especially in the context of the First Amendment," stated John W. Whitehead, president and founder of The Rutherford Institute. "Inevitably, people will always find something to be offended by. However, as Voltaire said, 'I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.' That's really what the First Amendment is all about."
The case arose when Christopher Bowler and fellow student James Milello, responding to what they perceived as a persistent anti-Bush, anti-conservative environment at Hudson High School, formed the Hudson High School Conservative Club as a forum for pro-American, pro-conservative dialogue and speech and to advocate respect and tolerance for their conservative point of view at school. In the fall of 2004, school officials officially recognized the Conservative Club as a Hudson High School student club, which qualified them to meet on school property during non-instructional time, as well as have access to school facilities for club-related activities and place posters in authorized locations throughout the school. Bowler and Milello chose to affiliate their club with a national organization, High School Conservative Clubs of America (HSCCA), whose stated mission is "to support the United States Constitution, uphold the Bill of Rights, advocate the moral standards of our Founding Fathers, encourage traditional American values, and assist students to form chartered conservative clubs in high schools throughout the nation."
In an effort to publicize and promote the club and its meetings, club members prepared and placed ten posters, which included information about the club and a reference to HSCCA's website, on walls and bulletin boards throughout Hudson High School on Friday, Nov. 12, 2004. By the following Monday, school officials had removed seven of the ten club posters, allegedly out of a concern that they promoted violence and were anti-gay. School officials reasoned that because the posters referenced the HSCCA website, which contained links to visual depictions of beheadings by Iraqi insurgents and terrorists, the posters thereby promoted violence, were inappropriate and could not remain posted. Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute filed suit against Hudson High School in May 2005. In September 2007, the Federal District Court for Massachusetts denied the school district's motion to dismiss the action. In allowing the case to move forward, District Court Judge Patti Saris declared that "the administration's fear of disruption cannot support censorship of the posters."
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