Today’s blacklisted American: 12-year-old sent home from school twice for understanding the 1st amendment better than his teachers
Liam Morrison, wearing the evil shirt that he wore the
second time teachers at Nichols Middle School sent
him home.
They’re coming for you next: When 12-year-old Liam Morrison came to Nichols Middle School in Massachusetts on March 21, 2023 wearing a T-shirt with the words “There are only two genders” on the front, two teachers pulled him from class and told him he would have to remove the shirt or he couldn’t return to class. He refused, and so his father came to pick him up.
The teachers claimed he was causing a disruption, that some other unnamed students felt unsafe seeing the shirt. Liam however had experienced the exact opposite. Not only did he hear no complaints, he found many other students telling him they liked the shirt and wanted one for themselves.
Rather than retell his tale in its entirety, however, let’s hear it from his own mouth. I have embedded below Liam Morrison’s statement to the Middleborough School Committee on April 13. Note how clear and articulate he is. If I had to guess, he is getting a lot of education outside of his Massachusetts public school, because based on these events I would have no faith they are teaching him anything of value.
Clearly, 12-year-old Liam Morrison understands the first amendment far better than his teachers. As he noted:
I have been told that my shirt was targeting a protected class. Who is this protected class? Are their feelings more important than my rights? I don’t complain when I see pride flags and diversity posters hung throughout the school. Do you know why? Because others have a right to their beliefs, just as I do.
…I know that I have a right to wear a shirt with those five words. Even at 12 years old, I have my own political opinions and I have a right to express those opinions. Even at school. This right is called the First Amendment to the Constitution.
A more succinct definition of the First Amendment would be hard to find anywhere, even in the writings of Thomas Jefferson or John Adams.
This story however does not end here. On May 5th Liam returned to school wearing this shirt, but this time the words “only two” were covered by the word “Censored.” His family had already hired the Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI) to represent Liam, and were prepared to sue if school officials did anything inappropriate.
They did. This is how Liam described what happened:
“Very, very shortly after I arrived, I was actually a bit early, is just as the school was opening up — it didn’t really take long for someone to walk into my homeroom and [someone] to tell me, ‘Hey, I need you to follow me,’” he told Fox News.
“And knowing the shirt I was wearing and even though how different it was, I figured out that they would probably want me to come to the principal’s office. And after I had followed them, I went to the room that they told me to, and I already took my shirt off because I knew that that’s what they were going to ask me to do.”
Despite his attempt to cooperate he was still sent home. Both the parents and their lawyers at MFI made it clear they will now be suing.
Last week, attorneys for the Nichols Middle School said it will continue to bar Liam from wearing the shirt, laying the groundwork for his civil rights lawsuit.
Sam Whiting, an attorney for the Massachusetts Family Institute — the Christian organization representing the youngster — believes this case is a slam dunk. “We believe that we’re going to get a win on this. I mean, I really can’t think of a better fact pattern to vindicate a student’s First Amendment rights,” Whiting told Fox News.
The biggest irony is that, on its face, the “censored” version of Liam’s T-shirt could easily be interpreted as a statement in support of the queer agenda. We all know that is not Liam’s belief, which is exactly why his lawyers probably advised him to wear it. Getting blacklisted for wearing the revised shirt demonstrates clearly that the school officials at Nichols Middle School aren’t interested in protecting a “protected class.” Their goal is to instead muzzle anyone who dares think something they don’t like.
Morrison is almost certain to win in court. That will not be enough however. On MFI’s twitter feed about this case one commenter made the following offer:
John Frazee: My wife and I own a screen printing business (27 years) and would love to donate enough printed shirts for his entire class! This nonsense needs to stop. God created a lot of things but only 2 genders.
Frazee included his phone number in the tweet. If only Morrison would call and get everyone who supported him at the school to wear the shirts. What will the petty dictators at Nichols do then, send everyone home?
Sadly I do not expect Morrison to call. Nor would I expect the other students who support him to show that support openly. Too many people today are afraid, and are thus willing to cower in silence when these leftist control freaks act to silence and oppress someone else. The best we can hope for here is for Liam to win big in court.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
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Liam Morrison, wearing the evil shirt that he wore the
second time teachers at Nichols Middle School sent
him home.
They’re coming for you next: When 12-year-old Liam Morrison came to Nichols Middle School in Massachusetts on March 21, 2023 wearing a T-shirt with the words “There are only two genders” on the front, two teachers pulled him from class and told him he would have to remove the shirt or he couldn’t return to class. He refused, and so his father came to pick him up.
The teachers claimed he was causing a disruption, that some other unnamed students felt unsafe seeing the shirt. Liam however had experienced the exact opposite. Not only did he hear no complaints, he found many other students telling him they liked the shirt and wanted one for themselves.
Rather than retell his tale in its entirety, however, let’s hear it from his own mouth. I have embedded below Liam Morrison’s statement to the Middleborough School Committee on April 13. Note how clear and articulate he is. If I had to guess, he is getting a lot of education outside of his Massachusetts public school, because based on these events I would have no faith they are teaching him anything of value.
Clearly, 12-year-old Liam Morrison understands the first amendment far better than his teachers. As he noted:
I have been told that my shirt was targeting a protected class. Who is this protected class? Are their feelings more important than my rights? I don’t complain when I see pride flags and diversity posters hung throughout the school. Do you know why? Because others have a right to their beliefs, just as I do.
…I know that I have a right to wear a shirt with those five words. Even at 12 years old, I have my own political opinions and I have a right to express those opinions. Even at school. This right is called the First Amendment to the Constitution.
A more succinct definition of the First Amendment would be hard to find anywhere, even in the writings of Thomas Jefferson or John Adams.
This story however does not end here. On May 5th Liam returned to school wearing this shirt, but this time the words “only two” were covered by the word “Censored.” His family had already hired the Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI) to represent Liam, and were prepared to sue if school officials did anything inappropriate.
They did. This is how Liam described what happened:
“Very, very shortly after I arrived, I was actually a bit early, is just as the school was opening up — it didn’t really take long for someone to walk into my homeroom and [someone] to tell me, ‘Hey, I need you to follow me,’” he told Fox News.
“And knowing the shirt I was wearing and even though how different it was, I figured out that they would probably want me to come to the principal’s office. And after I had followed them, I went to the room that they told me to, and I already took my shirt off because I knew that that’s what they were going to ask me to do.”
Despite his attempt to cooperate he was still sent home. Both the parents and their lawyers at MFI made it clear they will now be suing.
Last week, attorneys for the Nichols Middle School said it will continue to bar Liam from wearing the shirt, laying the groundwork for his civil rights lawsuit.
Sam Whiting, an attorney for the Massachusetts Family Institute — the Christian organization representing the youngster — believes this case is a slam dunk. “We believe that we’re going to get a win on this. I mean, I really can’t think of a better fact pattern to vindicate a student’s First Amendment rights,” Whiting told Fox News.
The biggest irony is that, on its face, the “censored” version of Liam’s T-shirt could easily be interpreted as a statement in support of the queer agenda. We all know that is not Liam’s belief, which is exactly why his lawyers probably advised him to wear it. Getting blacklisted for wearing the revised shirt demonstrates clearly that the school officials at Nichols Middle School aren’t interested in protecting a “protected class.” Their goal is to instead muzzle anyone who dares think something they don’t like.
Morrison is almost certain to win in court. That will not be enough however. On MFI’s twitter feed about this case one commenter made the following offer:
John Frazee: My wife and I own a screen printing business (27 years) and would love to donate enough printed shirts for his entire class! This nonsense needs to stop. God created a lot of things but only 2 genders.
Frazee included his phone number in the tweet. If only Morrison would call and get everyone who supported him at the school to wear the shirts. What will the petty dictators at Nichols do then, send everyone home?
Sadly I do not expect Morrison to call. Nor would I expect the other students who support him to show that support openly. Too many people today are afraid, and are thus willing to cower in silence when these leftist control freaks act to silence and oppress someone else. The best we can hope for here is for Liam to win big in court.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Our schools are filled with evil, vile, sexually perverted sicko freaks, totally devoid of all moral fiber, who have no intention of teaching your children school subjects, but to teach them to be evil, vile, sexually perverted sicko freaks like they are. Get you children out of public schools ASAP.
This is the first time since you have satarted these that I have clicked the hyperlink “they’re coming for you next”.
This list has gotten very long, and quite eye-opening.
Three thoughts. 1. The school’s legal advisor must have been absent. 2. The lawsuit needs to target the individual school employees rather than the district. It’d be an inequity for Liam Morrison’s parents, as taxpayers, to pay for their own settlement. 3. Then the parents need to find a way to go on a firing spree. If not through the existing board, get a new one and start eradicating the nest of vipers.
that some other unnamed students felt unsafe seeing the shirt
And this should very seldom be cause for stripping someone of their rights.
I have been told that my shirt was targeting a protected class.
And protected classes have always seemed to me to be unconstitutional.
I don’t complain when I see pride flags and diversity posters hung throughout the school.
You should. Because it’s an unconstitutional establishment of religion. And you should not have to deal with it.
I have a right to express those opinions. Even at school.
Actually, you’re wrong, kid. It’s the same as a corporate environment. You can be restricted from saying anything, as long as the restriction is content neutral. And your speech cannot be disruptive (since disruption of the learning environment defeats the purpose of everyone being there). What you express privately when allowed to conduct private conversations (“private” = “what two or more people say among themselves, but not as a public broadcast”) is a different matter.
Having said that, what the public employees say should be restricted, as well. IOW, all those gay pride flags are in violation of any speech limitations the school imposes for purposes of non-disruption.
Morrison is almost certain to win in court.
But not because he can just say anything he wants on his tshirt. Because they made it about offending some unnamed party, and threw in “protected class”. Not offending someone in a protected class is wholly inadequate reason to bar his speech. You can’t even justify it on the basis of anything in federal law. (Massachusetts law may be otherwise; and thereby constitutionally questionable.)
Of course, this could all be dealt with by simply stating that no clothing with statements or endorsements will be worn – basically nothing with words above and beyond a clothing brand name. And the restriction would be upheld since it’s entirely content neutral. Or you impose a simple uniform. Or you allow a free-for-all, since the idea of moderated language in a public setting is no longer a virtue in America.
FAR cry from when I was sent home in 1971, from 7th grade for wearing my tee that said “BULLSHIRT”! It had a cartoon graphic of s standard bull profile…..
GWB: Actually, numerous court rulings have said that Liam is right about the freedom to speak his opinions in public schools. These are government institutions, not private facilities, and the courts have ruled (including the Supreme Court) that no school official can deny students their free speech. I am almost certain one court case involved an anti-war T-Shirt in the late 1960s.
He will win for this reason.
Note too that the courts have ruled that schools cannot ban offensive language on shirts.
Robert, I suggest you look a little more critically at those decisions. Almost all (that withstood time and higher courts) were predicated on “If you allow expression then you have to allow ALL expression.” IOW, if you disallow all content outside of what’s necessary for work, then you’re good. If you allow any of it – like gay pride flags – then you have to allow all of it. And there is a distinction between “work communications” and “personal communications”, and clothing is considered a “work communication” in most cases.
But, most assuredly, work (and school) can tell you to shut your pie hole and get on with the job at hand.
GWB: You might want to read the lawsuit complaint which I link to in this earlier blacklist story:
Pushback: FIRE sues school for banning students from wearing “Let’s Go Brandon” shirts
The circumstances are almost identical, and FIRE details at great lengths the number of court cases that support the student’s right to wear shirts with political statements.
“[N]umerous court rulings have said that Liam is right about the freedom to speak his opinions in public schools. These are government institutions, not private facilities, and the courts have ruled (including the Supreme Court) that no school official can deny students their free speech.” Cases like Morse v. Frederick (the “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” case from Juneau, AK) have muddied the student free-speech water a bit, but I concur with Mr. Z. that this case falls squarely on the student’s side. (I also think the 9th Circuit decided Morse correctly and SCOTUS erred in overturning, but that’s neither here nor there.)
Make Borden: Be aware that I probably only cover about a tenth to a third of all stories involving the leftist/Democrat blacklisting of innocents. My list of stories is long, but it pales when compared to the reality of oppression that now rules the left.
Maybe school uniforms and that goes for teachers.