Supreme Court Balances First Amendment Rights of Bird Flipping Student

April 28, 2021
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case of Brandi Levy, a student who, in 2017, posted a profane rant on Snapchat after failing to make the school’s varsity cheer team. Directing her anger at her school, her cheerleading team, and “everything,” the then-14-year-old had no idea that she would be setting the grounds for one of the most important court decisions on student speech in decades. The Supreme Court will decide whether or not schools may punish students for off-campus speech, which includes social media sites where many teens spend hours a day browsing, posting, and commenting. The American Civil Liberties Union is representing Levy in the case, claiming that this decision would give schools and principals too much power, allowing them to punish speech that is “socially useful” and typical of teenagers. It is expected that the Supreme Court will decide the case in June.