Student Rights
In December of 1965 three public school students wore black armbands to school in protest of the Vietnam War. In response, the principals of Des Moines public schools adopted a new policy banning armbands. Consequently, the three students were immediately suspended from school. The issue is whether or not the First Amendment rights of freedom of speech apply to students in public school.
Tinker v. Des Moines played an essential role in defining students’ rights. The three public school students participated in a small and quiet protest that changed the vague relationship that existed between students and their constitutional rights in school.
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