Supreme Court Declines Free Speech T-Shirt Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has chosen not to hear the appeal of a Massachusetts student who challenged his school's ban on a T-shirt emblazoned with the phrase 'There are only two genders.' The student, Liam Morrison, argued that the ban violated his free speech rights under the U.S. Constitution.

Morrison's case was previously ruled against by both U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani and the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which deemed the ban a reasonable school restriction to maintain a safe learning environment. The case, rooted in 1969's Tinker v. Des Moines precedent, underscores tensions between students' rights and school protections.

While the decision aligns with federal policy shifts under President Trump, who has taken a conservative stance on transgender issues, the result has sparked divided opinions. Conservative Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas critiqued the denial of the appeal for failing to clarify schools' obligations. Legal debates continue as similar cases around transgender rights emerge nationwide.

(With inputs from agencies.)