Two Michigan students are filing a lawsuit against their school District, accusing it of viewpoint discrimination after school staff prohibited them from wearing sweatshirts expressing opposition to President Biden, according to a statement released by their legal team on Tuesday.
"These students should not only be allowed to express their political beliefs, but should be encouraged to do so," stated FIRE attorney Harrison Rosenthal.
"America's students must be free to exercise their constitutional rights, not just learn about them."
The lawsuit stems from multiple incidents in February 2022 and May 2022 at Tri County Middle School in Howard City, Michigan. The complaint alleges that school employees directed two students to remove their "Let's Go Brandon" sweatshirts, despite permitting students to wear clothing featuring other political and social messages.
FIRE attorneys representing the students argue that these incidents reflect a pattern of political favoritism within the school District. They point out that during a field day event, an administrator ordered a student to stop wearing a Trump flag as a cape but allowed students to wear gay pride flags similarly.
Although the phrase "Let's Go Brandon" originated to mimic a "f*** Joe Biden" chant, it contains no profane language. Consequently, the FIRE attorneys maintain that the school's dress code prohibiting earthly clothing is not applicable.
"The slogan exists as a way to express an anti-Biden message without using profanity," said Fitzpatrick. "A public school district cannot censor speech just because it might cause someone to think about a swear word."
The students are identified only as "D.A." and "X.A." in the complaint. The defendants being sued in their capacity include TCMS Assistant Principal Andrew Buikema and TCMS teacher Wendy Bradford. The school District itself is also named as a defendant.
According to the complaint, Buikema and Bradford were acting "under color of law" when they ordered X.A. and D.A. to remove their "Let's Go Brandon" apparel.
Howard City is located in west-central Michigan, approximately 35 miles from Grand Rapids, with a population of around 1,967.
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