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8 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Bethel School District v. Fraser (478 U.S. 675, 1986)
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The Primary Argument
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Does the First Amendment prevent a school district from disciplining a high school student for giving an inappropriate speech at a high school assembly?
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Facts and Background
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Mathew Fraser, a senior at Bethel High School in Bethel, Washington
Gave a speech during a class assembly of 600 students nominating a classmate to be student body president The speech contained sexual references and innuendos but no obscenities A teacher reported many students yelling and getting rowdy during the speech One teacher decided to forgo her lesson plan in order to talk about the speech Given a 3 day suspension and was removed from the list of students who could make graduation remarks He and his parents decide to appeal the decision of his suspension |
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The Speech
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“I know a man who is firm - he's firm in his pants, he's firm in his shirt, his character is firm - but most [of] all, his belief in you the students of Bethel, is firm. Jeff Kuhlman is a man who takes his point and pounds it in. If necessary, he'll take an issue and nail it to the wall. He doesn't attack things in spurts - he drives hard, pushing and pushing until finally - he succeeds. Je ,ff is a man who will go to the very end - even the climax, for each and every one of you. So please vote for Jeff Kuhlman, as he'll never come between us and the best our school can be. He is firm enough to give it everything." [Long pause after the word "come" on oral delivery, but no comma in the written version, according to Matthew N Fraser]
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Fraser is Victorious! at first
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After his appeal failed at the school he took the case to the Supreme Court of Washington with the help of the ACLU and won under the ruling that the school did not have the right to take away his first amendment rights
The School then appeals the decision US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and Fraser wins again under protection of the 1st amendment |
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The Supreme Court Trial
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Two historians testified against Fraser by giving speeches on the education system of America
"I wish therefore, . . . to disclaim any purpose . . . to hold that the Federal Constitution compels the teachers, parents, and elected school officials to surrender control of the American public school system to public school students.” Frasers case was that his speech and the political message during the Tinker protest are both the same and should be protected under 1st amendment |
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Supreme Court Ruling
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The court ruled in the school districts favor by a 7-2 marginal vote
The Court had earlier held, in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School Board, that students do not shed their constitutional rights at school and students were allowed to wear black arm bands in protest for the Vietnam war The court however found that Fraser’s use of lewdness and offensive language was inappropriate for a schooling environment and the "fundamental values of public school education” –Chief Justice Burger Justices Stevens and Marshall dissented. Stevens wrote, "I believe a strong presumption in favor of free expression should apply whenever an issue of this kind is arguable." |
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Impact Of The Case
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The trial showed that there was a scope of expression that the first amendment does not protect
There is a “limit of expression” that one can cross Schools should have the power over the student |
