Overview
- The San Dieguito Union High School District erased the suspension Wednesday after the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression pressed the case.
- Administrators had suspended the Torrey Pines junior in February for posting flyers that said "We [heart] ICE — Real Americans," calling them harassment and "fighting words," while the student said he wanted to show support for ICE and offer a counterpoint on campus.
- FIRE pointed to a February 6 anti-ICE walkout where students carried obscene signs to argue the school enforced its rules unevenly against opposing viewpoints.
- The district said it does not punish students for their political beliefs and cited student-conduct and safety policies that prohibit discrimination and harassment, noting privacy laws limit comment on individual discipline.
- The case highlights that public schools may curb only speech that causes a real disruption under Tinker v. Des Moines, a standard free-speech lawyers say districts sometimes misapply to political messages.