Morse v. Frederick

So for those of you who are interested in students' rights in school, here's a recent court case that dictates some restrictions on students' freedom of expression in school:

What Freedom of Speech Means to Me

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides the right of free speech or as it is commonly known "freedom of excpression," to every citizen. It holds that no legislative body, from Congress to State and locao governments, may enact a law forbidding this right. This amendment covers all forms of expression, not only verbal, but written and artistic expression as well. It even covers ideas and the right to impart these thoughts as we wish. The right to free speech is absolute however. The Constitution does not cover certain types of expression involving obscenity, child pornography, hate speech, or any speech that advocates force of voilence or civil disobedience.

I believe that this freedom is the most important freedom we have. Without this protection no person would be free at all. In essance, the government or anyone in charge could dictate what we think or how we express ourselves. Being an artist of any kind is to be someone who enjoys the ability to express themselves without fear of reprisal from the government or any critic. As long as there have been ideas to dicuss, freedom of speech was necessary in order to allow those ideas to grow. To protect this freedom is allow opposing views and sometimes ideals that are not best for society as a whole.

Although some may think that this freedom was an original idea when this country was founded, there have been others in history who held this right dear. As the Protestant Reformation was emerging in Europe, the freedom to speek new ideas had to be defended, lest Catholicism be the only Christian religion. In 1644 John Milton, a writer, made a plea for freedom of expression to Perliament when they restricted the licensing of printing presses. He said, "Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties." The freedom of expression gives birth to new ideas and neew discoveries. Without freedom of expression, this country could not have been created let alone being able to grow and thrive in the world.

Monument to Procrastination

CAMP G has decided to establish a new religion to honor Procrastination! In order to help us gain followers, we've decided to petition UNCSA to allow us to erect a monument to our new religion in Hanes Student Commons. Here's the link to view our petition and sign it:

http://www.petitiononline.com/893j4ct/petition.html

Please help us on our way to making the religion of Procrastination the fastest growing religious movement ever (I know we can beat Islam if we just try!).

Thanks all,

CAMP G

Gay Couples at Prom

When asked to express our feelings regarding gay couples being prohibited from going to prom, we decided to write a letter to out local newspaper editor. This is how it went:

Dear Editor,

Recently in my civics class we have been discussing the First Amendment to the United States’ Constitution. In the midst of our discussions about civil liberties, we brought up a situation regarding a certain high school’s prom. This school didn’t allow homosexual couples to buy tickets as a pair and get the discount, effectively stopping gay couples from attending prom. When the case was taken to court, the homosexual couple won but the high school just cancelled prom altogether, refusing to admit defeat, and ruining it for everyone. I don’t believe this was an appropriate response and more importantly, I believe the high school’s original policy was unconstitutional.

If homosexual couples want to go to prom together, but the school refuses to let them get discounted tickets, that is discrimination. They are telling the student population that being homosexual is wrong and that it isn’t normal and shouldn’t be accepted or encouraged. But more than that, not providing the discount is prohibiting the students’ freedom of speech. It is the students’ right to express themselves in any manner they wish, as long as the expression does not cause violence, hurt, or a disturbance to the school’s message. Going to prom as a gay couple would take place outside of school and though a school sponsored event, would not cause a disturbance to the school’s educational message. The school may not want to promote homosexuality but refusing to give the discount would be the extreme opposite and they cannot discriminate against gay and lesbians.

In my opinion, single students going to prom shouldn’t be charged more than couples in the first place. Having a discounted rate for couples only is a ridiculous policy. Just as not allowing homosexual couples to get a discount is discrimination, forcing singles to pay more is unfair. The school is essentially promoting couples and dating over being single. This shouldn’t be the message the school is promoting. There’s nothing wrong with not having a boyfriend or girlfriend. And having two friends go as a couple just to get the discount only creates an unnecessarily awkward situation for them.

So basically, all prejudiced issues involving high schools’ proms would be solved if there was just a set price for tickets per student. Charging more if you’re single or not recognizing a homosexual pair as a couple is discriminatory and violates the students’ freedom of speech. Even charging more if a student’s date is from another school shouldn’t be allowed. Is it not ok for students to be friends with people outside of their high school community? Of course not. That’s just not unrealistic and petty. And the school's decision to cancel prom altogether only reveals their immaturity and irrational behavior to a greater degree.Prom is a rite of passage, so to speak, for many high schoolers, so why complicate or ruin the experience by involving biased, impractical situation and opinions such as only allowing straight students in pairs to get a discount on their tickets? I may not agree religiously with homosexuality, but when our civil liberties are put on the line, it doesn’t matter what the specifics are, justice just needs to be upheld.

Sincerely,

C.A.M.P. G.