North Carolina School Board Liberalizes Policy On Distributing Material

Facing a temporary injunction that prohibited the enforcement of school rules that broadly restricted the distribution of written material by students (see prior posting), on December 15 the Sampson County, North Carolina School Board rescinded two of its long-standing rules. The rules that were discarded imposed limits on both students and outsiders. They were replaced with five new policies that prohibit only narrow classes of materials while recognizing students' rights to free speech and silent prayer (subject to restriction of obscene, lewd, vulgar or inappropriate speech). Sunday's Fayetteville (NC) Observer reports on these developments. The old rules had come under attack after the school applied them to prohibit a student from handing out Day of Truth cards presenting a Christian view on homosexuality.