Free Expression and Education: Between Two Democracies
Free Expression and Education: Between Two Democracies
Stephen M. Feldman, 16 Wm. & Mary Bill Rts. J. 999 (2008)
Part I of this Article discusses Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District and its progeny. Tinker, decided in 1969, articulated broad free expression rights for public school students, but subsequent cases retreated from that strong First Amendment position. Part I analyzes how the Court’s sundry viewpoints manifested opposed conceptions of education corresponding with republican and pluralist democracies. Part II focuses on Morse v. Frederick, holding that a public school did not violate the First Amendment when it punished a student for displaying a banner proclaiming, “BONG HiTS 4 JESUS.” The Justices’ various opinions in Morse epitomize the complex interrelations among education, democracy, and free expression.