Judge Rules Fathers Can’t Wear Pink Wristbands to Protest Biological Males in Girls’ Sports
“The message generally ascribed to the XX symbol, in a context such as that presented here, can reasonably be understood as directly assaulting those who identify as transgender women.”
This apparently happened in New Hampshire. What happened to Live Free or Die?
Liberty Unyielding reports:
“Bonkers” ruling: Judge wrongly rules fathers can’t wear pink wristbands to protest biological males in girls’ sports
A federal judge ruled that two fathers can’t wear pink wristbands that say “XX” to silently protest the inclusion in women’s sports of biologically-male transgender students. Bizarrely, the judge wrote, “The message generally ascribed to the XX symbol, in a context such as that presented here, can reasonably be understood as directly assaulting those who identify as transgender women.” The ruling is “bonkers,” notes former deputy assistant attorney general Ed Whelan.
Peacefully wearing a wristband to express your views is the very opposite of “assaulting” someone. Judge Steven McAuliffe, who accused the fathers of “directly assaulting” transgender people by wearing wristbands, should be ashamed of himself for saying something so false and intemperate. Equating speech with violence is a dangerous and reprehensible thing for a judge to do.
On April 14, Judge McAuliffe ruled that the “Bow School District was acting within its authority to kick two soccer dads out of a girls game for wearing pink ‘XX’ wristbands as a silent protest against biological males playing on girls’ teams,” reports the New Hampshire Journal. The fathers were also barred from school property for a time afterwards.
Del Kolde of the Institute for Free Speech, which represents the parents, said “We strongly disagree with the Court’s opinion…denying our request for a preliminary injunction. This was adult speech in a limited public forum, which enjoys greater First Amendment protection than student speech in the classroom.”
Judge McAuliffe also claimed the wristbands were a “demeaning and harassing assertion”, in his ruling Monday in Fellers v. Kelley.
This was wordplay to try to get around the First Amendment. the Third Circuit Court of Appeals observed in Saxe v. State College Area School District (2000), calling speech “harassing” because it demeans someone or hurts their feelings does not strip it of First Amendment protection, because “there is no categorical ‘harassment exception’ to the First Amendment’s free speech clause,” not even for “speech that is within the ambit of federal anti-discrimination laws.”
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Comments
OK, Judge. Now enforce it. Those pink bands are a form of expression, which is protected.
The judge doesn’t have to enforce it. The entire reason for the lawsuit was because the school kicked the parents out of the game and banned them from school grounds.
If they come back, they’re trespassing.
The judge’s ruling just validated the school’s actions, he doesn’t have to “enforce” a thing.
This should be grounds for impeachment. That’s just about as blatant a disregard for the Constitution and precedent as there can be.
It’s obviously a political statement because it replaces the first amendment with the left’s credo: “our violence is speech, your speech is violence”.
If blatantly ruling in contravention to the clear text, meaning and spirit of the Constitution isn’t grounds for impeachment, I don’t know what is.
It’s a terrible ruling, but it’s not grounds for impeachment. It’s bad judging, not bad conduct. The proper recourse is to go straight to the appeals court, and for the appeals court, after granting the injunction he refused, to call him privately on the carpet and ask what the hell he thinks he’s playing at.
I agree that this is the correct course, but as NH is in the First Circuit there’s no guarantee that the Constitution and rationality will win.
Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors”; otherwise, under Article III,
misdemeanors is the conduct towards other
throw into that mix the lefts successful actions of recreating that fluid constitution
THE JUDGES ACTIONS TOWARDS OTHERS ( the fathers and civilized society as a whole) and towards the spirit of the first amendment now opens him up for impeachment
Fine. They should wear pink headbands. And then pink armbands. And then pink shirts. And then white wristbands. All with XX on them.
Variation: wear a black band with white monogram “Pink Band”.
They can’t wear anything because they’ve been banned from the school. And if they were to be allowed back in and they were to wear any of those things they’d be kicked out again, and the same judge would uphold it on the same grounds.
The proper recourse in such cases is to go straight to the appeals court for an injunction, on the grounds that the harm to their first amendment rights is irreparable.
The wristbands are “directly assaulting” the Trannies, huh yer “honor”? I suppose yer “honor” also believes “words are violence.”
Sounds like yer “honor” is unfamiliar with the 1st Amendment. What a dope.
Might make sense to find an occasion where a bunch of people can wear those wristbands into the judge’s courtroom. Let him enter some sort of order in response — then perhaps it could be taken up to Ct App right away. What a clown of a judge.
Guy probably also ‘thinks’ that assaulting conservatives and burning down Tesla dealerships is protected speech under the First…
But your honor, Dos Equis is my favorite beer. Why am I not allowed to wear a Dos Equis wristband. LOL
I looked up this judge. He’s Christa McAuliffe’s first husband. Christa McAuliffe of the challenger space shuttle disaster. He went to law school after the disaster and one of the Bush’s nominated him to be a NH federal district court judge. His history probably gives him some immunity from criticism much as Az Senator Mark Kelly has some immunity from being married to Gabby Giffords.
Maybe in leftworld he gets immunity from criticism, but they probably love him anyway. Having a spouse die doesn’t exempt anyone else from criticism.
Hello lawsuit.
Um, this is a lawsuit. That’s why the judge was involved in the first place. They applied for an injunction and were refused. They can and should appeal that refusal. Whether they get it or not, their lawsuit will proceed.
if enough people do this ( wear the wrist bands)
the “law” will change
the left is now allowed to say/rule that
unfavorable ( to them) pov is the equivalent to ra pe
but somehow abortion is the same as choosing which outfit to wear