The debate has been raging for decades. It was Tinker v. Des Moines and Guiles v. Marineau; now it’s Trump hats and “vulgar” t-shirts. Either way, it’s the same issue: what kind of messages should students be allowed to wear on their clothes, and when does their freedom of expression cross the line?

If Ruth Bader Ginsburg had a nickel for every time she has heard a court case regarding freedom of expression, she’d be sitting on a gold throne in the Supreme Court. The heart of the discussion lies in the text of the First Amendment, which states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” Freedom of expression is a protected liberty under the First Amendment. Though freedom of speech can be confusing, freedom of expression is just as unclear.

Perspective is what it boils down to with regards to students’ clothing and freedom of expression. In my opinion, there are simply symbols and words that should not be condoned, especially at public schools in the United States. For example, if a student wore a shirt with a swastika on it, I think the general public would agree that the particular symbol of a swastika represents hatred toward a certain group of people and would cause a disturbance. There may be those who would argue that it is simply a geometric design that could have other meanings, but most people would see it as a message of intolerance. I would agree.

However, a student wearing a “Make America Great Again” t-shirt is not the type of clothing that the general public would typically find inappropriate to wear to school because it is not necessarily or explicitly implying any sort of harmful message. While some would say that Trump clothing inherently promotes hate, it does not necessarily, and could just be support for the candidate and his policies. Thus, in my opinion, students should be permitted to wear the slogan if they choose to. Many people would violently disagree with me on one or both of these examples, and I truly cannot say whether it is legally acceptable to restrict any type of clothing as  it is up to the courts system, but there is absolutely no one in the world who is able to determine what the Founding Fathers would have argued in these “for instances”. It is impossible to follow the Constitution down to the finite details.

Clothing, whether it’s to protest or support an idea or person, should be restricted at schools if it causes explicit disruption or would be considered lewd or promoting hate based on precedent. In life after high school, though, an individual can wear whatever they want. Liberty is a basic freedom our country was founded on. In general, I believe that restricting freedom of expression presents a far greater danger than allowing it.