Mary Beth Tinker Free Speech

The case was heard by the Supreme Court on November 12th, 1968 to a packed court house. The main constitutional question at hand was if a prohibition against the wearing of armbands in public school, as a form of symbolic protest, violates the First Amendment's freedom of speech and expression. Attorney Dan L. Johnson argued on the Tinker’s behalf, proclaiming that the students had the constitutional right, as per the 1st amendment freedom of speech and expression, to wear the black armbands as a form of symbolic speech. On the other hand, attorney Allan A. Herrick defended the school board’s actions, inciting that the prohibition of armbands was necessary to prevent and stifle any violence or disorder. The topic of discussion during the oral arguments centered largely upon whether Tinker’s protest was disruptive to the class environment. Johnson argued that the anti-Vietnam protest, although sparking some talk, was undisruptive to school, citing that there was no evidence of disruption in any of the classes. Herrick, conversely, argued that the Vietnam War was an inflammatory issue, and that armbands invoked violence, especially since a

In this text, the case hinges on whether the students created a disturbance. There was a fear that they might create one, but since they never did, the court held that their self-expression was protected.

On December 16, Christopher Eckhardt and Mary Beth Tinker wore their black armbands to school and were sent home. The next day, John Tinker wore his armband and was also sent home. Because of the protest, the students did not return to school until after New Year’s Day. This was the date they planned to end the protest.4 Parents, of the children who were sent home, were furious.

In 1969, three young activists walked into school and were told they could not symbolically express themselves. Without these teens carrying out this simple act of rebellion, students today would lack basic rights in the school place, as they would have no outlet outside of the home to express their views. In order to understand Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District one must examine the history behind the case, analyze the case itself, and evaluate the impacts on modern society.

Des Moines is an important case for free speech in the United States. It affirms that students don’t lose their rights when they go to school. However, it also affirmed that schools can limit speech that “materially disrupts classwork or involves substantial disorder or invasion of the rights of others” (Tinker v. Des Moines, 1969). However, the Court has ruled that there are times that the school can limit speech. In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled in Bethel v. Fraser that students can be disciplined for using vulgar and offensive language in school (Gooden, Eckes, Mead, McNeal, & Torres, 2013, p. 25). This case differed from Tinker v. Des Moines because that case was about political speech or expression. Another example of where school can limit the First Amendment is school sponsored newspapers. This was affirmed by the Court in Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier (1988). That decision stated that schools can reasonably limit the content of school-sponsored newspapers (Gooden, Eckes, Mead, McNeal, & Torres, 2013, p.

The case of Tinker v. Des Moines revolved around American's discontent for the actions the country was taking overseas in Vietnam. In 1965 in protest against the war, John and Mary Beth Tinker "wore black armbands to their public school as a symbol of protest against American involvement in the Vietnam War" (StreetLaw Inc. 1). The two were young students at a local high school. Their protest was noticed by the authorities of their school, who then promptly demanded that the two remove their armbands. This demand was denied, and the Tinkers refused to do so, claiming that it was their right to free speech that was provided to them by the Bill of Rights. As a result the two were suspended from their school (StreetLaw Inc. 1). Yet, the Tinkers were unwilling to accept the punishment, and saw the act as a violation of their First Amendment rights. They sought legal action and took the case all the way to the Supreme Court in 1968.

In 1969, a group of students filed a lawsuit against their school district claiming that their First Amendment rights were violated because the school district wrote a policy that prohibited them from wearing black armbands in a silent protest of the Vietnam War. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969) ruled that students are entitled to their First Amendment rights as long as they are not causing a disruption to the school environment. This paper outlines the procedure and rulings in the case as well as other legal rulings that have expanded on when censorship of students is protected in public school settings as well as provides a personal reflection on how such matters can impact my future as a school administrator.

John Tinker, Mary Beth Tinker and Christopher Echardt all attended the same public school. They decided to wear black armbands to school to protest the Vietnam War. They were asked by the school to remove the armbands but the kids refused to do so. This resulted in the suspension of all three students. Through their guardians, the scholars sued the school region for infringing the scholar’s right of expression and looked for a directive to keep the school from suspending them. The Tinkers took to court. The Tinkers claimed that they were suspended for essentially expressing their views on the war. They thought this move made by the school

In December of 1965, students attending Des Moines Public Schools held a meeting at Christopher Eckhardt 's house to conduct a plan to show their support for a truce in the ongoing Vietnam War. They resolved to wear black armbands during the holiday season and also to fast on December 16 and on New Years. The principals at the school received word of the plan, and on December 14, they established a policy that banned armbands in school. Anyone who refused to remove the armband at a teacher’s request would be suspended. However, this did not deter Mary Beth Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt, who, on December 16, wore their armbands and were sent home. John Tinker did the same thing the next day and was immediately sent home. None of them returned to school until after New Years. Their fathers then sued the schools for violating their children 's right to freedom of expression. However, the District Court dismissed the case, and the US Court of Appeals affirmed the decision, because of this, the families appealed to the Supreme Court.

December 1965 in Des Moines Iowa John and Mary Beth Tinker decided to show they are opposition to the Vietnam war by wearing black armbands with peace signs on them to school. The administrative office quickly found out about their plans making a new school rule banding armbands anyone who wore these armbands and then refused to take them off if asked would then be suspended.

A group of students gathered for a meeting in December of 1965. They planned to show their support for peace in the Vietnam War. John Tinker and a group of his friends met at Christopher Eckhardt’s home in Des Moines. They all agreed to wear black armbands during the entirety of the holiday seasons and to not eat on the 16th of December and New Years Eve. Their school discovered the student's plan and decided to produce a policy that stated that any student wearing an armband who would not remove it if asked would be suspended. The school would only allow the students to return if they agreed to follow the new policy and remove the armbands. John Tinker’s sister, Christopher Eckhardt, and the other students who attended their meeting all wore the armbands to school. Mary Beth Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt were suspended since they did not cooperate with the policy. Tinker’s parents sued the school for repressing their children's self-expression and opinions. They demanded that a law would be made to forbid the school from disciplining their children for their expressive actions.

The students were suspended and told not to come back unless they didn’t wear the armbands. They complied, but their parents took the case to the Supreme Court, claiming a violation of First Amendment rights, specifically freedom of speech. On February 24th, 1969, “the Court ruled that the First Amendment applied to public schools, and school officials could not censor student speech unless it disrupted the educational process,” ("Tinker v. Des Moines - Landmark Supreme Court Ruling on Behalf of Student

On December 1965, John Tinker, 15, wore a type of bracelet or armband to school to protest the Vietnam conflict, which led to the first amendment case for free speech for public school students. During that time, small groups of people, or families, would meet at the Tinker’s family home and join in with the protest of the Vietnam conflict. As more people got involved with wearing the protest bracelets, the school eventually got the armband type bracelet unacceptable in some schools in Iowa.

During the Vietnam War, a group of students that went to a public school in Des Moines, Iowa organized a silent protest against the warfare. To show their anguish, they planned to wear black armbands with peace symbols. When the principal got wind of this remonstration he threatened the students if they wore the armbands again they would be suspended. Despite the warning the undergraduates still persisted and wore the armbands, they were suspended. During their suspension the parents of the students sued the schools for violation their children's right to free speech. A U.S. district sided with the school, that wearing armbands could disrupt learning. The students appealed the ruling to a .S. Court of Appeals but lost and took their Case

From the 1950’s to today, the Supreme Court has expressed their view on the necessity of free speech on university campuses through the many cases where they decided to further protect free speech for everyone involved. In 1957, their decision