Student solidarity with silenced babies on firm legal ground
Alliance Defending Freedom ready to defend participants in 10th annual Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity
Monday, Oct 14, 2013
Attorney sound bite: Jeremy Tedesco
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Alliance Defending Freedom is offering free legal assistance to public school students who participate in the Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity if their First Amendment freedoms aren’t respected. The event, being held Tuesday at schools across the nation, offers pro-life students an opportunity to express their views on abortion.
“Public schools should encourage, not shut down, the free exchange of ideas,” said Senior Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “Nearly 2,300 attorneys allied with Alliance Defending Freedom nationwide are ready to defend participating students if they have their constitutionally protected freedoms violated on campus. Under the First Amendment, these students are free to express their views on abortion just as other students have the freedom to express their views on the same and other topics.”
The Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity is a non-disruptive, student-led event occurring outside of instructional time.
Alliance Defending Freedom has published legal memos for both public school and public university students, informing them of their freedom under the First Amendment to peacefully express themselves on their campuses to promote awareness about the dangers, as well as the physical and emotional toll, of abortion. Alliance Defending Freedom has successfully defended students whom public school officials have barred from participating in the event in past years.
The legal memo explains that “College and university students retain their First Amendment liberties while on campus.” As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit has recently ruled, “on campus, ‘free speech is of critical importance because it is the lifeblood of academic freedom.’”
The memo also notes that “The Supreme Court has held time and again, both within and outside of the school context, that the mere fact that someone might take offense at the content of speech is not sufficient justification for prohibiting it.”
The Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity is sponsored by Stand True Ministries, a pro-life youth organization led by President Bryan Kemper.
“Public schools should encourage, not shut down, the free exchange of ideas,” said Senior Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “Nearly 2,300 attorneys allied with Alliance Defending Freedom nationwide are ready to defend participating students if they have their constitutionally protected freedoms violated on campus. Under the First Amendment, these students are free to express their views on abortion just as other students have the freedom to express their views on the same and other topics.”
The Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity is a non-disruptive, student-led event occurring outside of instructional time.
Alliance Defending Freedom has published legal memos for both public school and public university students, informing them of their freedom under the First Amendment to peacefully express themselves on their campuses to promote awareness about the dangers, as well as the physical and emotional toll, of abortion. Alliance Defending Freedom has successfully defended students whom public school officials have barred from participating in the event in past years.
The legal memo explains that “College and university students retain their First Amendment liberties while on campus.” As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit has recently ruled, “on campus, ‘free speech is of critical importance because it is the lifeblood of academic freedom.’”
The memo also notes that “The Supreme Court has held time and again, both within and outside of the school context, that the mere fact that someone might take offense at the content of speech is not sufficient justification for prohibiting it.”
The Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity is sponsored by Stand True Ministries, a pro-life youth organization led by President Bryan Kemper.
- Pronunciation guide: Tedesco (Tuh-DESS’-ko)
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.
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