Tinker v. Des Moines | Homework Help from the Bill of Rights Institute
Why did a subtle act of protest against a foreign war reach the Supreme Court? In 1965, students John and Mary Beth Tinker wore black armbands to school to protest the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War, despite the Des Moines school district prohibiting such an act. The Tinkers sued the district for violating their First Amendment rights, and the Supreme Court ruled in their favor in a 7-2 decision. While subsequent Supreme Court rulings narrowed the scope of free expression rights at school, Tinker v. Des Moines remains a landmark case that has defined First Amendment rights for students.
0:00 Speaker 1: In 1969 the supreme court ruled that a public school forbidding students from wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam war was a violation of the first amendment rights. Speaker 2: How does a seemingly subtle act of protest result in such a momentous decision? On what basis was the case decided? This is the story of Tinker versus Des Moines.
0:20 [music] Speaker 1: In 1965 Americans were divided in the support of the Vietnam war with protests grouting nationwide.
0:41 Speaker 2: In Des Moines, Iowa, a group of students led by 15-year-old John Tinker, his sister Mary Beth and their friend Christopher Eckhardt, quietly carried out their own act of protest by wearing black armbands to school. Speaker 1: The school district prohibited the armbands threatening suspension or expulsion if the students didn’t comply. The tinker family active in civil rights and antiwar movement were
1:04 committed to protecting free speech and took the school district to court. Speaker 2: After the district court ruled against the Tinkers, the case was brought to the United States Court of appeals, which resulted in a tie. The Tinker family would make one final appeal in 1968 to the Supreme Court. Speaker 1: With the lower level courts divided, how would the highest court come to
1:25 a decision and what would it mean for the Tinker family and other American students? Speaker 2: Attorney Dan Johnston took on the case for Tinker arguing that the school districts armband policy was unconstitutional and violated the student’s First Amendment rights. Speaker 1: He also maintained that since students have been granted constitutional protection of the right to symbolic expression in schools
1:46 in the 1943 case of West Virginia State Board of Education versus Barnett, the same reasoning should apply to the students’ use of the armbands. Speaker 2: Opposition to the case was firm arguing that the student’s decision to wear the armbands was a disruption to the school’s duty to maintain order, so much so that it outweighed their first amendment rights.
2:07 Speaker 1: The interpretation of the constitution had been debated and a major decision was underway. Do First Amendment rights disappear when a student enters a public school? Speaker 2: According to the Supreme Court that answer is, no. The 72 count came with justice Abe Fortas writing for the majority. Speaker 1: Fortas wrote that teachers and students quote, "Do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech
2:28 or expression at the schoolhouse gate." Speaker 2: Fortas further argued that student expression cannot be suppressed when it doesn’t interfere with school discipline. Speaker 1: The defense maintained that the Tinker’s behavior was a disruption, a sentiment echoed in future cases. Speaker 2: In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled that a student could be legally suspended for a rude speech,
2:49 and in 1988 the court decided that it was within a schools’ power to censor student newspapers. Speaker 1: Turbulent political times often inspire protests, especially among passionate young people. Speaker 2: What will next test the limits of free speech and result in a Supreme Court controversy? This was the story of Tinker versus Des Moines.
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