Sophomore suspended for publicly accepting gay kids

My inclination is to not allow such a shirt to be worn in school, simply because it references sexuality (of any kind). Just seems to be that referencing sexuality in school is a distraction. But then the old feelings of "stifling freedom of expression" start to rise up and makes me wonder.....
1. Should a teacher be able to wear that shirt?
2. Should you allow kids to wear t-shirts with any writing on it they want? Such as: Straight? Fine with me.
I personally tend to dislike T-shirts and bumper stickers with any political messages, because who really cares what ya think?

That being said, I don't care for homophobia and wish it would go away. I know that is the intent behind the shirt.

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I don't think high school should be a place for activism of any kind. Nor of finding or expressing or judging or otherwise discussing the students' sexual identity. I agree the shirts are a distraction and most likely were intended to be. I also feel that they raise the possibility that one or more fights will break out (we're not talking about mature intellectuals, folks). This is not a remote possibility, but what frequently happens when the subject of gay classmates comes up. I think the school administration is right to ban the shirt in school.

Activism is wrong for high school because all the students are forced to go there. You would not want to be forced to march in a Ku Klux Klan parade. Why should you be forced to attend what amounts to a rally on one political / moral view or another? When our laws force this on young people, it always gets ugly. And it's not necessary.

At that age, the focus should be on developing the ability to read, reason, and write well enough that when they are mature enough to intelligently consider the alternative views out there, they have the tools to make the right kind of difference. When I was in high school, my teachers assigned writing projects that allowed us to research, develop, and express our views without having a controversy with other students. I feel that is enough for people of that age. If they want to be activists, they can do that off of school grounds.

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I totally support this student's right to wear this shirt. I feel that it is important to encourage behavior that re-enforces non-prejudical views. There are to many expressions of intolerance that we are faced with everyday.

Supporting others in diversity should be encouraged. I think as a society we need to allow children to express their acceptance of the people in their life such as parents, siblings, aunts/uncles and others who do not fall into the "WASP" definition of what is acceptable. I do believe that deciding to engage in any sexual activity or realizing ones own sexual orientation requires education, experience and maturity but this type of statement does not scream "this is what I have chose". Instead it represents an acceptance of others.

If schools are allowed to limit this type of expression then shouldn't shirts in support of Christian values also be banned? I am curious to know that if on the same day this student was suspended were there any students wearing these types of clothes.

As for the comment regarding activism in high schools I completely disagree as long as these activities occur on a voluntary basis. I do not feel that students should be required to attend/participate in activities that are against their beliefs. My daughter does not have attend the pray at the flag pole gathering that takes place on the school campus or the Bible club meetings, at the same time other students have the choice of whether to attend a PFLAG meeting for example.

The fact is though children are raised within their parents beleif system, this can be a hindrance in the sense that they have difficulty being accepting of others. I have made the decision with my own daughter to expose her to many differant lifestyles/religions so that she will have the information needed to make the decisions that are right for her as an adult. I believe that children need to have this exposure to be able to develop the ability to work with a diverse group of individuals in their future employment.

The world is becomming smaller and we all are a part of a global community. We must be able to interact with others of all races, sexual orientations, religions and nationalities or we will not be able to survive or strive as a people.

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Activism: a doctrine or practice that emphasizes direct vigorous action.

Since when is joining any movement a requirement, even in high school? I'm familiar with peer pressure, but being forced to join the KKK seems a bit extreme.

I would absolutely encourage my children to be activists for their beliefs, no matter what their age. I know that I would NEVER, EVER tell my kids that they were too young to change the world.

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I think people are missing my point. When you are forced to go and sit in a room or a building where people are in the process of activist expressions, you are being forced to participate in something you may or may not believe in or even understand, or even want to understand. This includes cases where that place is a classroom and those activist expressions are t-shirt logos. There is no place for "protecting activism" in a place where children are forced to stay. In effect, that is curtailing the rights of those who disagree with those slogans or whatever other activist expressions.

For example, suppose the KKK youth decided to protest integration by wearing their hoods to school. This is their activist expression. Should all the other students (black, white, whatever) be forced to sit peacefully in the same classroom with them? I think you would say no. Although the "not anti-gay" slogan wasn't as offensive by current, mainstream US standards as a KKK hood, it was still probably offensive to some; indeed, there was a time in the not-too-distant past when it would have been considered more offensive than the KKK hoods in many parts of our country. I think if you focus on principles, you will agree that when it comes to free speech, the fact that lots of people agree with you doesn't mean you have more right to express a thought than you would if lots of people didn't agree; otherwise it wouldn't be called activism. No matter what the activist expression, it is not fair to force students to put up with it quietly and peacefully, which is what we are doing when we protect kids' right to express it in the classroom or common areas of the school during school hours. (I'm not talking about after-school clubs and such.) Furthermore, it is a bad idea to have the school administration deciding which activist expressions do or don't cross some line of propriety. Then you get into all kinds of arguments about the administration's bias. Who cares? Just keep it all out of the classroom. Let them write letters to their congressmen, march in the public square, play in a protest band in Friday nights, whatever. Just keep it out of places where all kids are forced to attend.

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