A boy recently confronted his school board after being sent home for wearing a t-shirt with the words “There are only two genders.”
He is in 7th grade
The seventh grader spoke to his school committee to encourage them to support his right to free speech.
He wanted to speak to the board
He started out by saying, “I appreciate the opportunity to speak to you today. I never thought that the shirt I wore to school on March 21st would lead me to speak to you today.”
His shirt was making others uncomfortable
Liam claims that he was taken out of gym class by two teachers for what he called a ‘very uncomfortable talk.’
The boy was told that his shirt was making some students feel unsafe and that there had been complaints about the shirt.
He couldn’t believe it
Liam said, “Yes, words on a shirt made people feel unsafe. They told me that I wasn’t in trouble, but it sure felt like I was.”
He was asked to remove the shirt but refused
Liam was then told he would need to remove his shirt before he could return to class. He claims that he politely declined, and the teachers then decided to call his dad.
“Thankfully, my dad supported my decisions and picked me up,” the boy said.
He believes his shirt wasn’t harmful
He said that his shirt only had five words written on it. There are only two genders. “nothing harmful, nothing threatening. Just a statement I believe to be a fact,” he continued.
What about his rights, he asked
Liam was told by his teachers that his shirt was targeting a protective class, to which he responded, “Who is this protective class? Are their feelings more important than my rights?”
He respects others’ right to free speech
Liam continued, “I don’t complain when I see pride flags and diversity posters hung around the school. Do you know why? Because others have the right to their beliefs just as I do.”
No one complained to him in person
The boy claims that not one person, staff, or student told him that they were bothered by his t-shirt. In fact, some students supported him and wanted the same shirt as well.
The teachers told him the shirt was disruptive
Liam was told by his teachers that the shirt was a disruption in learning, but he said that “no one got up and stormed out of class, no one burst into tears. I’m sure I would have noticed if they had”
Liam told the school board that he experiences disruptions to his learning every day. He sees kids acting out in class, and yet nothing is done
He thinks it’s wrong
He feels that there are different rules for different people. “I feel like these adults were telling me that it wasn’t OK to have an opposite view.”
Liam continued, “I didn’t go to school that day to hurt feelings or cause trouble.”
He’s learned a lot
The experience has taught him a lot, he said. For example that other students shared his view and that adults don’t always do the right thing or make the right decisions.
He has the right to express his opinion
The boy says that he knows he has the right to wear a shirt with those five words and that even at 12 years old, he has his own political opinions, and he should have a right to them.
He hopes the school will support him and others
Liam finished his speech to the school board by appealing to them to “speak up for the rest of us so that we can express ourselves without being pulled out of class.”
“Next time, it may not only be me. It may be more students deciding to speak out. Thank you for your time, and good night.”
Images are for illustrative purposes only
Source: Middleborough Public Schools: School Committee Meeting
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