Defending Education Files an Amicus Brief in D.A. v. Tri County Area Schools

In Michigan, the Tri-County Area School District banned students from wearing clothing with the political slogan, “Let’s Go Brandon.”  Both the federal trial court and federal appellate court determined that because the phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” carried a “profane double meaning,” school officials rightly prevented students from displaying the message. But that type of speech is the kind of political speech normally protected by the First Amendment. The Supreme Court has consistently upheld the free speech rights of students in educational settings, confirming that public schools should be the “nurseries of democracy,” and protect the “marketplace of ideas,” and holding that “students do not shed their free speech rights at the schoolhouse gate.” 

On May 1, 2026, Defending Education filed an amicus brief in D.A. v. Tri-County Area Schools, urging the Supreme Court to grant review and determine whether schools can censor nondisruptive political speech that is not plainly profane or lewd. If the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision is upheld, K-12 students throughout the region will be hindered in speaking on important political topics of the day. DE’s mission is to prevent that outcome, and we are hopeful for the Court’s review of this important case.

Read the full amicus brief below:

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