“The Supreme Court is the highest tribunal in the Nation for all cases and controversies arising under the constitution of laws under the United States Supreme Court.” In other terms, the Supreme Court holds essential power. The impact of the Supreme Court affects everyone, even high school students. Many cases went to the Supreme Court regarding high school students that we still use as references today.
One such case, Tinker vs. Des Moines. According to supremecourt.gov, in December of 1965, two students were suspended for wearing black bands around their arms protesting the Vietnam War. When their parents found out, they sued the school, saying it violated their children’s first amendment rights to freedom of speech. The case went to the Supreme Court, which stated that students’ rights do not end when they walk through a school building door. However, they also stated that students could only express these freedoms if it does not disrupt the classroom and learning environment. For this case, the Supreme Court sided with the students, saying black bands around their arms were not a distraction and only created conversation outside of the classroom. Because of this case, many districts now use this case to decide if dyed hair and piercings should be allowed by the student body.
Another significant case was New Jersey vs. TLO. In 1985, a student was caught smoking on her high school campus and, as a result, had her bag taken and searched where they found a pack of cigarettes, marijuana, and other substances. The principal expelled her. Her lawyer then argued that it broke the fourth amendment, her protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. However, the Supreme Court ruled that when on school property, students have an exemption from this when reasonable. Because of this, students must give their bags up for searching when asked.
One of the most significant cases to this day is Brown vs. Board of Education. The case took place in 1954 and was centered around the argument over segregation in public schools. The case first started when Oliver Brown filed a class-action lawsuit against the Board of Education of Topeka when he found his daughter Linda Brown was denied entrance to Topeka’s all-white elementary school. In the lawsuit, Brown argued that the schools were not equal and violated the “equal protection act” of the 14th amendment.
This case soon went to the Supreme Court along with four other cases; the court ruled that ‘separate but equal” has no place in a school. Judges found segregated schools to be “inherently unequal.” It was not until Brown vs. Board of Education ll gave the rights to the school board, lower federal courts, and district courts that schools started listening. Leaving it up to the local courts, while seeming like a good idea, soon backfired when officials found many states defied the law and refused to allow students of color into their schools.
According to History, the most well-known example of this occurred with the Little Rock Nine, when the Governor of Arkansas called the state National Guard to stop black students from attending high school in Little Rock in 1957. When President Eisenhower heard about this, he deployed federal troops to help the nine students known as “Little Rock Nine” to enter and attend the Central High School with armed guards. While this case did not desegregate schools, it helped fuel the civil rights movement, ending segregation in schools.
While it may not always seem like the Supreme Court directly impacts teens, their decisions can affect your everyday life. While many believe that the Supreme Court may be useful, the court needs change. For example, The Center for American Progress argues that justices should not serve for life, but rather get shorter terms. Many also think that while the justices make important decisions, they do not intervene enough and play it safe too often. While some of these accusations may hold some truth, the Supreme Court has still managed to accomplish desegregation, disabilities protection, and protection of religious rights in school.
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