Judge orders Pendleton Heights HS to let Gay-Straight Alliance advertise events

PENDLETON, Ind. (WISH) — A national tribunal justice ruled Wednesday that Pendleton Heights High School indispensable allow Pendleton Heights Gay-Straight Alliance to usage schoolhouse resources to advertise events arsenic different pupil groups do.

Judge James R. Sweeney II of the U.S. District Court successful Indianapolis issued a preliminary injunction against the schoolhouse and the South Madison Community School Corp. He says successful the ruling that the precocious schoolhouse has allowed astatine slightest 1 different “non-curriculum” nine to usage the advertizing resources and indispensable assistance adjacent entree to different clubs.

Pendleton Heights Gay-Straight Alliance filed a national lawsuit in September aft being told it’s “unofficial.” The designation had meant the pupil nine could not publicize its beingness connected bulletin boards oregon connected the precocious school’s vigor station, oregon rise funds connected schoolhouse spot arsenic “official” pupil groups can.

Pendleton Heights Gay-Straight Alliance, however, successful September received support to resume meetings with a module sponsor aft schoolhouse hours astatine Pendleton Heights High School.

The suit filed Sept. 22 successful national tribunal successful Indianapolis is against the South Madison Community School Corp. and Connie Rickert, the precocious schoolhouse principal. South Madison Superintendent Mark Hall did not instantly reply to an email from News 8 aft the ruling. The schoolhouse territory suspended classes starting Monday for its Quarter 2 break, which ends Jan. 3.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed the suit connected behalf of the pupil radical astatine the Madison County school. A quality release in September from the ACLU of Indiana said the radical “provides gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, non-binary and allied students to conscionable and supply social, emotional, and acquisition enactment to 1 another.”

The suit argues the principal’s actions make hurdles that different pupil groups don’t face.

“The differential attraction aimed at Pendleton Heights Gay-Straight Alliance by administrators is unwarranted and these students indispensable beryllium treated successful the aforesaid mode that each different pupil groups are treated,” said Kit Malone, advocacy strategist astatine the ACLU of Indiana, successful the release.

The suit asks the tribunal to amusement that the territory violated national instrumentality and free-speech rights successful the U.S. Constitution, and to springiness the Pendleton Heights Gay-Straight Alliance the aforesaid privileges arsenic immoderate different pupil groups.

Pendleton Heights High School, which has astir 1,400 students, is astir 14 miles northeast of Indianapolis.