Speech at the Schoolhouse Gate

By Shawn Healy

Washington State's consideration of legislation to expand student press rights has spawned national discussion over the extent to which the First Amendment applies to students within the schoolhouse gate. USA Today ran point/ counterpoint articles on the subject in today's editions, and Gene Policinski of the First Amendment Center weighed in on proposals in both Washington and Kansas, the latter legislation creating a board of approval for student publications beyond the principal.

The McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum's current temporary exhibit, Speech at the Schoolhouse Gate: Students' Use of First Amendment Freedoms, celebrates the vibrancy of the five freedoms both inside and outside the classroom. The top ten entries in the inaugeral MTFM/ J-Ideas National Editorial Cartoon Contest are the centerpiece of the exhibit (check them out on our web site), and are complimented by the four winners of the Illinois First Amendment Center poster contest.

Also on display are award-winning entries from the DuPage County Regional Office of Education "Call to Action," an article on media censorship in Gumbo Teen Magazine, and another article on First Amendment case law as it applies to schools in Say What?, a publication by Young Chicago Authors. Finally, two student-produced documentaries complete the exhibit. "The First Amendment Through Our Eyes" was compiled by Free Spirit Media, and "Live Free" by student filmmaker Alex Capogna.

The exhibit runs through March 25th, and look for a reprise of the cartoon contest next year with expanded categories to include photo journalism, web pages, and film.

Speech clearly does not begin or end at the schoolhouse gate. Its extent inside the classroom walls is the subject of debate in Washington and Kansas. The Freedom Museum shows the fruit of such endeavors as legislators weigh in on this most pressing of matters.