The kid.
Posted on 08/30/2006 9:00:34 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
A US student who sued school officials after he was made to censor his T-shirt that labelled President George W Bush "Chicken-Hawk-In-Chief" and a former alcohol and cocaine abuser won an appeal yesterday to wear the shirt to school.
The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favour of Zachery Guiles, who through his parents claimed his free speech rights had been violated.
School officials made him put duct tape over parts of his T-shirt that showed a Bush image surrounded by cocaine, a razor blade, a straw and a martini.
Guiles, who as a seventh grader in 2004 wore the T-shirt to Williamstown Middle High School in Vermont once a week for two months after purchasing it at an anti-war rally, appealed the case after a lower court ruled in favour of the school.
The school argued the images were offensive because they undermined the school's anti-drug message.
The T-shirt read "George W Bush" and "Chicken-Hawk-In-Chief" with a picture of the president's face wearing a helmet superimposed on the body of a chicken.
The back of the T-shirt showed lines of cocaine, a martini glass and smaller print that accused Bush of being a "Crook", "Cocaine Addict", AWOL", "Draft Dodger" and "Lying Drunk Driver".
The appeals court said while the T-shirt "uses harsh rhetoric and imagery to express disagreement with the president's policies and to impugn his character", the images depicted "are not plainly offensive as a matter of law".
The court agreed with the lower court that ruled Guiles' suspension from school should be expunged from his record.
What about shirts that support Bush?
Ah never mind that question.
Yeah I am sure as a 12,13, maybe 14 year old these are HIS views and not you know his parents.
Forget dress code, that kid needs a good, solid, parental ass-whoopin'!
I hope the "justice" system will be equally eager to protect the rights of one or two kids to express their displeasure towards this punk.
The kid.
Or a whoopin' delivered by peers.
Call some toadie macaca and all hell breaks loose, but the left mocks on a daily basis without repercussion.
George is a monkey, Condi is a Parrot, Tony is a Poodle, its all good because the left would never belittle someone or mock them.
The Christians in that school need to start exercising their "free speech" too!
Thank God he wasnt wearing an American flag shirt. He would have been suspended!
From this site:
At 14, Zachary Guiles is a focused and thoughtful citizen. He plays first trombone in the Vermont Youth Symphony Orchestra, likes to ride his dirt bike and to read — especially Michael Moore’s books. And he has a good relationship with both of his parents. ...Meanwhile, Zach is getting on with his own life. Last year was the first time he had been in public school for several years. He is back to being home-schooled this year, although he attends music classes and plays in the school band at Williamstown Middle High School. ...
Tim Guiles said he is not surprised that his son is at the center of a First Amendment firestorm.
“I’ve been involved as an environmental activist for years, and I’ve brought Zach to anti-nuclear protests,” Guiles said. “He has grown up with activism around him … It’s really a natural progression to find this cropping up in his life.”
A few good belts in the ear should help him no-end!
The court was right; the kid has a right to express even offensive and boorish opinions.
The real story is that some poor seventh grader got brainwashed by his parent's sick delusions and dragged into a protracted court battle as a pawn for the moonbat left. I was around that age when Clinton was first elected; I was aware my parents didn't exactly like him but they certainly didn't shove it down my throat like this kid's parents did. Even if they had there's no way in he** they'd have let me wear a shirt like that with Clinton (or anyone else) on it.
Hopefully he'll be sporting Matching Black eyes and a wedgie too...whadda fug...
Would they have ruled the same way if it was a tshirt with Clinton on it pushing a wheelbarrow with Chinese campaign money in it?
Why is a seventh grade wearing clothes with alcohol and drugs? That is against any policy that I would find around my area. Ridiculous.
Actually - that is JUST what should now happen across the country. Get your kids Bush shirts - the court has ruled! How could they then say that PRO bush shirts are offensive while slanderous ones aren't?
Indeed, this ruling could be used to wear shirts with all kinds of messages from our side - can't beat 'em? Thney just gave us a weapon. Use their own methods against 'em
Those parents need a good, solid, ass-whoopin'. Why am I not surprised. I'm a son-of-a-boomer and I'm pretty conservative. A lot of my collegiate peers are also conservative. Most kids are pretty pissed about what ninnies their parents are.
The kid looks real fruity. I'm betting he's already been beaten just for wearing that crappy jacket.
Yep, just like I said in post 13. Poor kid never had a chance to form an independent thought.
The only bright side I see is that he's just about at the age where he'll start to rebel, and since his parents appear to be as far out there as it gets, the only way he can rebel is to become an America-loving, pro-capitalist, preppy Reaganite conservative :-p
Good thing he didn't have a two inch tall plastic Army man with bayonet.
Zero tolerance would have gotten him tossed.
One would hope that when he's older and free from his lunatic parents the kid will be able to think for himself and look back on this part of his life as when he was young and stupid. And drive his parents nuts by voting Republican...
by whom?
the same parents that probably provided the shirt and then took it all the way to the supreme court?
A good solid ass-whoopin is needed - on the parents
The triumph of tawdry demoralizing low-class behavior.
We are become a nation of slobs.
It worked for Alex Keaton : )
Yes I do. We live in America, not the Soviet Union.
Hmmmm.....
That's a good point you are making.
Red diaper baby alert!
Since this kid is now a "public figure" due to this I suggest some of his current fellow students wear t-shirts with his likenss and an appropriate message about his IQ.
You can bet his parents won't think someone with a t-shirt of their little s**thead is free speech.
Time to break out the Hitlary T-shirts and see how well this ruling works.
And how many US presidents in YOUR family, Zac?
Have you checked out Myspace......????
who cares if he wears a anti-bush shirt?
|
Isn't this the CV for the Chap of Quiddick?
I know, I know. You can imagine how this situation played itself out:
Mom: Now Jimmy, go put on your Coke and Bush shirt.
Kid: No Mom! The kids at school make fun of me for it!
Mom: Dammit Jimmy! Just because your friends' parents drive SUVs, vote Republican, and are anti-gay homophobe theocrats doesn't make them right. I need you to wear that shirt so the kids know that Bush lied and people died.
Kid: Mom, please....
Mom: Listen. If you wear the shirt I'll let you pick out your own organic wheat at the co-op. No more spelt for you, trooper! Since you're teaching your friends about Herr Bush the Cokehead, I think you're responsible enough to decide what flavor tofu you want.
Kid: I'm gonna get an ass-whoopin' for this.
Nobody. The whole flap is over him wearing a shirt that promotes drug use by showing a pile of cocaine, a razor blade, and a martini glass. The fact that it is anti-Bush is being waived about by lefties to distract from the actual problem. Do you think a tee-shirt showing a pile of cocaine, a razor blade, and a martini glass is appropriate for the seventh grade?
Fine with me so long as the same standard is used when looking at non-liberal t-shirts.
That sounds inappropriate for school to me even without the President.
Sad.
And typical.
AD, nothing surprises me anymore.
My son wears a Club Gitmo shirt (Rush RULES) and a John Kerry Waffle House shirt to school....no problems so far....
Good, he gets to where that shirt then I`m sure that they`ll have no problem with my kid wearing "Bill Clinton is a rapist yet liberals elected him twice" or "Marion Barry smoked crack on video yet liberals elected him twice" Then have on the other side of the shirt: "Liberals; Wanting only the best for you"
You should see what Detroit teachers wear - shoulder holsters.
Apparently it's a wonder to the author.
Really..... the "right" for a child to express himself miraculously appeared in the constitution about the same time abortion became a right in 1973?
Too bad I graduated just before that. Girls could only wear skirts...that touched the floor when kneeling. No culottes were allowed unless they had the flap in the front and back, looking like a skirt. Boys could not wear jeans. Nor could they wear t-shirts at all, as I recall.
Tennis shoes were for gym class. Jeans could not be worn at post game dances. Lockers were searched if and whenever the principle felt like it. You could not leave the school grounds during lunch without special written excuse from your parent.
If you were tardy a certain number of times, you got detention. If you were a smart mouth, you were sent to the principle's office and were usually given detention. Parents were notified of all of the above, which meant you were in more trouble at home.
We were taught history, geography, government, english, math, reading/literature, science and basic health/hygiene. When we graduated from high school we knew more than most college graduates of today.
We were kids. There were rules. The rules were enforced. We learned.
And all of this in a public school before 1973.
No. But someone sitting in this judge's courtroom wearing a Clinton shirt with a picture of a stained dress, wet tipped cigar, and a picture of a condom with a red line through it might be appropriate.
Bet the judge doesn't feel that much towards free speech.
Yes, a nice red tone with this on the front and back.
I'm sick to death of this political crap.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.