High-school student punished for posting “vulgar” blog comments
Mar 9th, 2008 by Rob
A Connecticut high school junior is suing her school after administrators disciplined her for using “vulgar speech” on a personal blog.
The student, who was upset about the cancellation of a music festival, called the administration “douchebags” and implored other students contact the school superintendent and “piss him off.”
The school subsequently banned the girl from running for student government office and demanded that her friends not wear t-shirts in support of her cause.
Julie Pippert at Using My Words writes about the issue,
“Color me surprised a teen said douchebag about a school administrator and used the phrase “pissed off.
Had she said this aloud, she would not have been punished. But because she wrote it, the school and a court believe she should be. That? In my humble opinion? Is excessively unreasonable.She didn’t threaten, nor did she employ libel, slander, hate speech or anything else we disallow from the protection the First Amendment provides.”
