For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Linda Paris
202-308-5186
[email protected]
Federal Judge Finds That Forcing High School Students to Convey Confederate School Names Violates Their Constitutional Rights
HARRISONBURG, VA—A federal district court judge today found that forcing high school students to be “walking billboards” for Confederate general Stonewall Jackson violates their First Amendment rights. According to the court’s opinion, students in Shenandoah County cannot be compelled to be carriers of the name Stonewall Jackson and the Confederate message that it represents.
The NAACP Virginia State Conference, along with five individual students, brought a lawsuit challenging the 2024 decision of the Shenandoah County School Board to name two public schools after Confederate generals. The complaint alleged that forcing Black students to attend a school honoring Confederate leaders creates a school environment that denies them an equal opportunity to an education and violates their right to Equal Protection under the Fourteenth Amendment and that violates all students’ First Amendment right to freedom of speech. Today’s opinion addresses the First Amendment challenges.
“This decision reverberates far beyond the walls of Shenandoah County’s schools,” said Marja Plater, Senior Counsel at the Washington Lawyers’ Committee. “The federal district court judge delivered a powerful victory for students, affirming that they cannot be obligated to promote the legacy of Stonewall Jackson—a symbol deeply associated with the Confederacy. The court’s opinion makes it unmistakably clear: students deserve the freedom to define themselves unencumbered by symbols they do not choose. Children should never be compelled to promote a message that runs counter to their beliefs.”
This decision finds that because playing sports and participating in extracurricular activities is a critical part of high school students’ experiences, the Shenandoah County School Board cannot force students to carry a message with which they disagree in order to participate: “When plaintiffs’ bodies, hard work, talents, and achievements are intertwined with the name “Stonewall Jackson,” plaintiffs are enlisted in conferring honor on that name, and because that name conveys a message well-understood by viewers in plaintiffs’ community, plaintiffs are enlisted in conferring honor on that message by extension.” Following foundational First Amendment cases that recognize that it is unconstitutional to force individuals to “to serve as “instrument[s] for fostering public adherence to an ideological point of view [they] find unacceptable”, the court today vindicates students’ constitutional rights.
Rev. Cozy Bailey, president of the NAACP Virginia State Conference said: “This ruling is more than a victory. It reinforces what we know to be true; those who led the Confederacy should not be honored. The students in Shenandoah County and across the Commonwealth deserve to be in a learning environment and participate in extracurricular activities proudly and one that honors who they are.”
The Washington Lawyers’ Committee and Covington & Burling LLP represent the Virginia NAACP and student families.
“This decision is a key vindication of what our clients have argued since the School Board proposed reinstating the Confederate names: forcing them to constantly espouse pro-slavery, anti-Black messages is a violation of their First Amendment constitutional rights,” said Li Reed of Covington & Burling. “The families and students, and the Virginia State Conference NAACP, have been steadfast and courageous in their fight to protect their rights in this case, and we look forward to vindicating the remainder of their claims at trial.”
The decision also recognizes that the name Stonewall Jackson, “is expressive as a symbol of racial exclusion in public schools.” The Virginia NAACP and students’ claims that the names also violate the Equal Protection Clause, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and the Equal Education Opportunities Act are ongoing and set for trial in December 2025. While today’s orders will not result in an immediate change to the school names before trial on the remaining claims takes place in December, it finds that as a matter of law, compelling students to participate in sports and extracurricular activities under the banner of Stonewall Jackson violates their rights.
Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Motion for Summary Judgment
For More Information:
Virginia NAACP & Students Sue the Shenandoah County School Board
ABOUT THE VIRGINIA NAACP
Founded in 1935, the NAACP Virginia State Conference (Virginia NAACP) is the oldest and largest nonpartisan civil rights organization in the Commonwealth, overseeing over 100 NAACP branches, youth councils, and college chapters. The Virginia NAACP is focused on being the preeminent voice of Black Virginians and advocating for policies and programs to benefit Black Virginians and people of color. You can read more about the Virginia NAACP’s work by visiting www.naacpva.org.
ABOUT THE WASHINGTON LAWYERS’ COMMITTEE
The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs works to create legal, economic, and social equity through litigation, client and public education and public policy advocacy. While we fight discrimination against all people, we recognize the central role that current and historic race discrimination plays in sustaining inequity and recognize the critical importance of identifying, exposing, combatting, and dismantling the systems that sustain racial oppression.
ABOUT COVINGTON & BURLING LLP
Covington has demonstrated a strong commitment to public service. The firm is frequently recognized for pro bono service, including 12 times being ranked the number one pro bono practice in the U.S. by The American Lawyer. Much of the firm’s pro bono work is anchored in meeting local needs, serving economically disadvantaged individuals and families in our surrounding communities, in addition to its long history of serving vulnerable clients and important causes throughout the U.S. and the world.