April 23, 2009
Judge Tom
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School allows student to wear gay-pride wristband

Chris Quintanilla is a 14 year old student in the 8th grade at a school in Peoria, Arizona.  Chris is gay and last month, he wore a cloth rainbow wristband with the words “Rainbows are gay” written on it.  rainbows-are-gay His principal told him to either take it off and not wear it or to turn the wristband inside out because some teachers felt the wristband was “offensive”.

Chris and his mother contacted the ACLU as they believed that Chris’s First Amendment right to free speech was being violated.  The ACLU got involved and wrote a letter to the school district addressing their concerns about the school’s decision to ban Chris from wearing the wristband.

The letter pointed out the First Amendment protections that apply to teens as well as adults.  Ultimately, the school district agreed to lift its ban and allow Chris to wear the rainbow wristband.

For more about dress codes and freedom of expression at school, see:  http://askthejudge.info/can-i-wear-what-i-want-to-school/43/

Judge Tom

The Author Judge Tom

Judge Tom is the founder and moderator of AsktheJudge.info. He is a retired juvenile judge and spent 23 years on the bench. He has written several books for lawyers and judges as well as teens and parents including 'Teen Cyberbullying Investigated' (Free Spirit Publishing) and 'Every Vote Matters: the Power of Your Voice, from Student Elections to the Supreme Court' (Free Spirit Publishing). When he's not answering teens' questions, Judge Tom volunteers with the American Red Cross and can be found hiking, traveling and reading.

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