Dungeons And Yearbooks

Do schools have the right to determine the students' yearbook attire? One Rhode Island mother believes that her son should have his photo with armor and sword included in the school's yearbook. It goes without saying that she has filed a lawsuit in order to get her way:

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The mother of a high school senior who posed in chain mail and held a medieval sword for his yearbook picture sued after the school rejected the photo because of its "zero-tolerance" policy against weapons.

Patrick Agin, 17, belongs to the Society for Creative Anachronism, an international organization that researches and recreates medieval history. He submitted the photo in September for the Portsmouth High School yearbook.

But the school's principal refused to allow the portrait as Agin's official yearbook photo because he said it violated a policy against weapons and violence in schools, according to a lawsuit filed Monday by the Rhode Island branch of the American Civil Liberties Union.

The lawsuit seeks an order that would prevent the yearbook from being published without Agin's senior portrait.

Agin's mother, Heidi Farrington, said she and her son believe the decision defies common sense.

"He doesn't see it as promoting violence," Farrington said Tuesday. "He sees it just as a theatrical expression of the reenactment community that he's involved in right now."

According to the lawsuit, principal Robert Littlefield told Farrington she could pay to put the photo in the advertising section of the book, but he would not allow it as Agin's senior portrait.

"That in and of itself demonstrates to us that there's absolutely no legitimate rationale for banning Patrick's photo," said Steven Brown, executive director of the Rhode Island ACLU.

Personally, I believe that since the yearbook is a collective effort that is representative of the school and its community, it should be up to the school to decide what standards apply to its content.

Lady Wackjob Mom and the American Inquisition ACLU should back off on this one. --------------------------------See our latest EduPosts here and this date's Extra Credit Reading there.