A high school cheerleader who posted a photo of herself on Snapchat displaying the middle finger and using the f-word prevailed in 3rd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. The school disciplined her for violating the cheerleading squad’s “Respect Rule,” but the court ruled that her speech made off campus, on the weekend and without use of school computers was protected speech under the First Amendment and did not disrupt the school. (Courthouse News Service, June 30, 2020, by Emilee Larkin)
The girl was protesting being placed on the JV rather than the varsity cheerleading squad. One of the three appeals court judges, although agreeing to the core opinion, expressed concern that applying Tinker v. Des Moines in this case might in future cases be applied to perhaps racially tinged speech. (Education Week, July 1, 2020, by Mark Walsh)