Most of us like to think of our school as a pretty progressive place – we have discussions about elections in class, we drape the school in pride flags and champion every history month out there. But the truth is, when things become controversial, Jackson-Reed’s administration has a troubling pattern of suppressing free speech, both from students and teachers. 

Anyone who runs a club’s social media account is aware of, or should be aware of, the school’s 2024-2025 policy; all social media posts, and posters to be hung around the school must be cleared by JR administration in advance of posting. Those that are deemed inappropriate, including for being “too political”, are not allowed. 

Many students surmised that this crackdown was in response to last year’s Arab Student Union (ASU) advertising their showing of a film on Israel’s apartheid, and the ensuing conflict culminating in a lawsuit against Jackson-Reed for suppression of First Amendment rights. This conflict included a months-long fight by the ASU to host a Palestinian Culture Night, despite the administration’s claims that proper procedure had not been followed. Many members of the ASU and others pointed out that those procedures had never before been enforced, and it was likely because admin found it was too overtly political. This messaging was reminiscent of the shutting down of the Pennies for Palestine fundraiser in the 2022-2023 school year for similar reasoning. 

The free speech issue extends beyond students as JR staff and teachers have also expressed feelings of hostility from administration when discussing contentious topics. Over the last three years, we’ve written numerous articles about administrative decisions, new school policies and other controversial issues occurring at JR. Nearly every time, teachers and staff have declined to comment, expressly out of fear of administrative retaliation. Those who do comment almost always request to remain anonymous, or carefully workshop quotes to avoid coming across as overly controversial or critical. 

These fears of pushback from administration don’t appear to be unfounded. In fact, one JR teacher is currently pursuing a complaint with the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) against DCPS.  They’re alleging punitive reassignment of subjects taught, as well as other interference, in retaliation for advocating for student free speech and critiquing administrative crackdowns throughout the 2023-2024 school year. 

This year, teachers reported feeling pressure from JR to remove materials they had put out about protective immigration measures for students. This issue was exacerbated for teachers on visas who worried that upsetting the administration could threaten their immigration status. 

Regardless of the validity of concerns about retaliation from administration or higher authorities, the reality is, Jackson-Reed has developed a culture of avoidance. This trickles down into every area of student life. Our class discussions avoid divisive current events for fear of an upset, our community events are restructured to avoid political discourse, and even in purely student–led areas, the effects proliferate, like on the Beacon where we tend to play it safe and avoid being critical. The culture of avoiding those topics that make us “uncomfortable” damages our education because the issues that are most uncomfortable are often most critical.