Minnesota’s proposed anti-bullyng law requires public schools and private schools receiving any public money to ban conduct including speech that would prevent a student from participating in “a safe and supportive learning environment.” Eugene Volokh of the Volokh Conspiracy, March 4, 2013, argues that “on the face of it,” the law is overbroad and unconstitutional.
Katherine Kersten of the conservative Center for the American Experiment, dedicated to defending free enterprise and traditional values, believes the law is not so much about stemming bullying as to promoting an agenda to shape views on “sexuality and family structure” that could keep students from expressing their views on such topics as same-sex marriage. Such speech could be perceived as “humiliating” or “offensive” and affecting another student’s feelings of well-being and therefore labeled as bullying. (StarTribune, January 12, 2013, by Katherine Kersten)