KANSAS CITY, MO – The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri the ACLU secured a win for its Lincoln College Preparatory Academy clients and has dismissed the civil rights lawsuit that was filed against the Kansas City School District alleging that the District violated the students’ First Amendment rights.
On Nov. 20 at Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, 14 students stood silently in the back of the auditorium and held their hands up in a sign of surrender in order to send a message to Governor Nixon. They were immediately ushered out of the auditorium, sent home and threatened with a 10-day suspension. The students were eventually told their punishment would be to serve Saturday detention and that they would have a permanent mark on their school record related to their actions.
“We are pleased that Lincoln Academy administrators agreed to withdraw the discipline of the students and remove any mention of it from their permanent records,” said Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU of Missouri. “Students do not lose their First Amendment rights when they enter a school building.”
“The students found a way to send a respectful message they knew could be unpopular with the Governor or their school,” said Jeffrey Mittman, the ACLU of Missouri’s executive director. “The ACLU is most needed at times like this because it is easy for those in positions of authority to go after messages of dissent.”