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Several Southern California teachers face disciplinary action after violent anti-Trump riots after November’s election disrupted school communities and sparked heated debate over teachers’ right to share political views facing.
A Moreno Valley teacher was placed on leave this month after a racist and expletive-filled rant attacking Trump and his supporters.
Meanwhile, two high school teachers, Chino and Cerritos, are under investigation for allegedly reacting to a student wearing MAGA gear in class and causing an outburst. A substitute teacher at Beverly Hills High School also said she was disciplined for online posts criticizing President-elect Donald Trump and denouncing students’ actions at a MAGA rally on campus.
Each case has its nuances, but taken together they raise the question: What is a teacher’s right to express his or her political views? We asked First Amendment experts to investigate.
Generally speaking, K-12 teachers do not have a First Amendment right to share partisan speech in the classroom, but they have broad protections when sharing it online. , said Peter Eliasbart, chief counsel of the ACLU of Southern California.
Adding swear words or racist language to partisan remarks in the classroom, he added, makes teachers more likely to face disciplinary action.
In the Moreno Valley incident, a high school teacher used the F-word, called Trump a “rapist, draft-dodging coward,” blamed Trump’s victory on black and brown men, and told students that they would not be able to help their fathers or uncles. said many Latino men, including And our grandfathers want to be white.
“Clearly the teacher acted inappropriately toward the student,” said attorney Michael Oberling, who teaches First Amendment rights at the University of Southern California. “The language was inappropriate. The racist comments were inappropriate.”
At Chino High School, a teacher was recorded telling a student wearing a Trump hat that they were “voting for a goddamn rapist” and calling Trump supporters a “bunch of losers” and “fake Christians.” A spokesperson for Chino Valley Unified School District said the matter was immediately investigated, but the district could not comment on potential disciplinary action.
Oberling explained that there are limited circumstances in which teachers can express political opinions.
For example, they are allowed to make educational points by playing devil’s advocate in class debates about contemporary American politics. But he said schools likely have the right to restrict political speech if it is not directly related to the subject at hand or is not expressed in a respectful and age-appropriate manner.
An ABC Unified spokesperson said students are welcome to discuss politics at Cerritos High School within certain limits.
Recently, a teacher at the school reportedly stormed out of a classroom because a student was wearing a Trump hat. A spokesperson said in a statement that the incident is under investigation, but that teachers are encouraged to “raise real-world issues, like the recent election, and have meaningful, age-appropriate discussions with students in the classroom.” He said that this is encouraged.
Rules regarding political speech vary widely when it comes to online postings.
Eliasberg said public school teachers have strong First Amendment protections for sharing political views online, including abusive language. Private schools may have stricter requirements for teachers’ off-campus conduct, but California labor laws that make it illegal to fire employees for political conduct still apply. he said.
But he said problems could arise if online political posts cast doubt on a teacher’s ability to do their job.
“If students make certain statements that have the potential to have a very harmful effect or be very disruptive to the classroom, the district may have some ability to engage in discipline,” Eliasberg said. said. “Part of a teacher’s job is to not discriminate on a variety of grounds, including race, religion, and sexual orientation.”
In the case of Beverly Hills High School, a substitute teacher who reported receiving disciplinary action and no longer works at the school shared a wide range of posts criticizing President Trump in general. But she also criticized students who attended MAGA rallies, saying they harass and intimidate minority students.
In a statement from Beverly Hills Unified Supreme Court, Michael Breggie said the district could not comment on this specific case, but added that no employees were fired last month. He also said the district is committed to fostering a culture of respect that embraces differences, hears all perspectives and values all voices.
About a dozen Black students voiced concerns about the MAGA rally at Beverly Hills High School, saying they were harassed and racially abused at a recent school district board meeting.
Eliasberg mentioned the Beverly Hills substitute’s post, saying, “If it was a general comment about an incident that happened at school or a student’s reaction, it’s very surprising that the district disciplined the teacher for that behavior.” “I think we are in a precarious position,” he said.
Meanwhile, Oberling said the Beverly Hills substitute teacher’s online post about the gathering ignored proper channels for disciplining students and may have violated district policy.
“Schools should have disciplinary committees, which should be consistent in their disciplinary action and investigate the facts to uncover the real culprits,” he said. “Teachers who make comments ‘outside of school’ are not following protocol.”
One of the clearer areas is the right to wear T-shirts and badges expressing political views in the classroom.
According to the ACLU, the court found that schools have the right to prohibit such behavior by teachers, but that this prohibition cannot be extended to students.
In Cerritos, a teacher stormed out of the classroom and criticized the school for allowing students, but not teachers, to wear political attire in an email sent to students, Los Cerritos News reported.
“It is a neutral position for one group to be allowed to express their political views while the other remains silent under threat of losing their job or receiving serious discipline. Not,” she wrote.
The angry teacher at Chino High School also shared her frustration over the different rules regarding dress for teachers and students.
“If Harris wasn’t available.” [hat] You can’t wear it,” he said, according to a recording of the rant, referring to the student’s Trump hat.
In the 1969 Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines, the court upheld students’ First Amendment rights after they were threatened with suspension for planning to wear a black armband to protest the Vietnam War. The judgment was in favor. The ruling established a precedent that public school authorities cannot censor student speech unless it substantially disrupts the educational process.
Teachers are still held to strict standards, and courts have ruled that schools can discipline educators who wear T-shirts or buttons with political messages or slogans, or who display political classroom decorations. It was determined that there is a possibility.
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