Basically a somewhat funny novelty shirt that also helps my son celebrate his cultural heritage. It doesn't denigrate non-Jews or anything, it's just a positive and slightly humorous shirt. That day though, we got a call from a very uptight principal who was all verklempt over this shirt saying Adam couldn't wear it anymoer. "Where did he get this shirt?" he asked. Uhhh, Tel Aviv? In what twisted universe does that even matter anyway? He's a Jewish kid wearing a Super Jew shirt. What is the big deal? I just looked up the school dress code and nowhere does it mention you can't wear a shirt like this. I thought maybe there was something against religious symbols or something (though it's a stretch to call anything there that) but this is the school that made him paint Easter eggs in Kindergarten. Nothing. It doesn't promote anything illegal or denigrate others, nor is it obscene.
In fact, what the school is doing is COMPLETELY unconstitutional. In the landmark Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District case, the Supreme Court ruled that a public school did not have the right to limit a student’s right to free speech unless it was necessary to avoid substantial interference with school discipline or the rights of others. Future cases have provided the exceptions where the school does have a right to limit speech, e.g. in the Morse v. Frederick “Bong Hits for Jesus” case where the court ruled that students don’t have the right to promote illegal drug use.
Maybe if these people made school feel less like a prison, kids would actually enjoy them more.
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