Generally speaking I don't believe people, especially adults, should wear clothing with political statements on them at school, but if you're forced to undergo political indoctrination, I'm willing to relax that rule a bit in the interests of "equal time" and respectful dissent:
A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of a Washington state teacher who wore a MAGA hat to his district’s pre-school year “racial bias and cultural sensitivity” trainings.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals three-judge panel said former Wy’east Middle School Principal Caroline Garrett had violated science teacher Eric Dodge’s constitutional rights in 2019 when she told him “Next time I see you with that hat, you need to have your union rep,” Education Week reports...
The genesis of the imbroglio was Dodge “displaying” the hat “on top of his backpack” at the trainings. He never actually wore the hat during the sessions. The leader of one workshop, a professor from Washington State University, told Principal Garrett she felt “intimidated and traumatized” by the hat...
Garrett and other school district officials prevailed in district court after Dodge sued, but a unanimous Ninth Circuit panel “revived” the teacher’s case against the principal. It ruled that Dodge’s hat did not disrupt the educational process and that “political speech is the quintessential example of protected speech, and it is inherently controversial.”
The Ninth Circuit has been getting some cases right lately, and this is certainly one of them. While this was not en banc, but merely a 3-judge panel, I'm pleased that the court ruled correctly. "The most overruled circuit court in the country" will not have to face down the Supremes on this ruling.
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I wonder if anyone would be traumatized by the Magritte painting called "Black Magic" or "Woman Bottle". Neither of which are safe for work, (and there is at least one that is really NSFW, but cannot find the name quickly.
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