Censorship of the body?

Lauren Thiery
To You Editor, Fused

It is a scary thing indeed when a person no longer has the right to freely express themselves on their body, something which should clearly be protected under the First Amendment’s right to free speech clause.

On April 8, information was released regarding the suspension of Anthony Joseph Brown, a high school student in Huntington, West Virginia. Brown was suspended for 10 days because he had written a controversial phrase on his hand, which read “Free A-Train.”

The phrase indicates that Brown is a supporter of Anthony “A-Train” Jennings, a former Huntington student who currently faces charges of shooting a police officer. Jennings is also the alleged leader of a gang, the Black East Thugs (BET).

Principal Greg Webb of Brown’s school justified Brown’s suspension by arguing that supporters of Jennings, who write “Free A-Train” on their hands, “caus(e) a disruption in…school and interfer(e) with the educational process.” He, as well as Judge Robert C. Chambers, who ruled on Brown’s case, also argued that Brown’s suspension was justified because it gave the school reason to be worried about gang activity and support. Webb also added that he does not believe Brown’s suspension to be an issue of censorship.

This case is a prime example of the violation of students’ rights to freedom of speech. Even if a person does not agree with or support other’s beliefs and causes, such as the support of Jennings, it does not give them validation to ban a person from writing a phrase on their hand and then suspending them from school. Disagreeing with others on controversial topics is no excuse to prohibit someone from freely expressing themselves and their beliefs.