California Family Appeals Ruling Punishing 1st Grader for School Drawing

Published on July 19, 2024

A schoolchild and her mother asked a federal appeals court this week to decide whether a child should have been punished for making what their lawyers call an innocuous drawing that arose out of a history lesson in class. The case centers around a drawing in which the white child wrote the phrase “Black Lives Mater [sic]” but then apparently caused offense by qualifying it with the phrase “any life.” The opening brief in the new appeal was filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on July 15. Lawyers for the child, known in legal papers as B.B., say she was punished for her speech, and that school officials in Capistrano Unified School District in California’s Orange County retaliated against her. They say both the punishment and the retaliation violate the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution....

Continue reading on website
Other news

Washington Bakes in Record Heat Wave Exceeding 100 Degrees

July 19, 2024
Washington experienced temperatures over 100 degrees for four straight days this week, matching the district’s own record.The nation’s capital reached triple digits July 14 to 17, topping out at 104 degrees on July 16. The heat index, which factors in relative humidity to gauge how hot it feels, reached 108 degrees. It tied the date record originally set on July 16, 1988.Temperatures reached 102 d

The Hollywood Museum: Max Factor’s Colorful History

July 19, 2024
CommentaryEvery year, millions of tourists flock to Los Angeles in search of one thing: Hollywood glamour. They may be disappointed, though, since it’s scarcely to be found among the modern high rises, huge electronic billboards, and graffiti-decorated overpasses. Even on Hollywood Boulevard, the Walk of Fame’s stars may be obscured by homeless encampments and debris. However, just around the corn