Brittany McComb Valedictorian Speech

During the spring of 2006, graduating senior Brittany McComb was chosen to give the valedictory speech at Foothill High School in Henderson, Nev., by virtue of achieving the highest GPA in the school. After composing her remarks, she submitted them to school administrators according to standard district policy. School administrators, with the advice of their district legal counsel, censored her speech, deleting all three Bible references, several references to "the Lord" and the only mention of the word "Christ."

On Thursday, June 15, 2006, McComb delivered her commencement address to over 400 fellow students, families and staff. However, believing that the district's censorship of her speech amounted to a violation of her right to free speech, she attempted to deliver the original version of her remarks in which she shares her personal beliefs about the role that her Christian beliefs played in her success.

When school officials found her to be straying from the approved text, they unplugged her microphone, thus ending the address. Despite extensive jeers from the audience over the school officials' actions, McComb was not permitted to finish giving her valedictory speech. In filing suit against Foothill High School officials, Rutherford Institute attorneys stated, "Brittany's stellar academic performance qualified and entitled her to address her classmates at graduation in her own words, yet the Defendants sought to censor her speech, coerce her into giving a different speech in violation of her conscience, and interfere with and censor the delivery of her speech, all based upon her religious belief and viewpoint." Visit www.rutherford.org for more information.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Free
• Speech
• Censorship
• McComb
• Christian
• Graduation
• Valedictorian
• Faith
• Separation
• of
• Church
• and
• State

[nosajj12345]

@kyleberryvideos ".I bet they would have let her finish if she was mentioning buddhism or another religion.."

You'd lose that bet LOL

[ticks4ticks4]

What a boring, over-poetic NARRATIVE.

[Mattt8D]

Booo, boooooo! We want self-validation for our asinine beliefs!!! Bring the preacher-girl back on!

[sammygod09]

You go Girl

[itstonymacaroni]

If she had been topless I would have let her keep going.

[7freedum]

The 1st Ammendment mentioned protections for religious speech to ensure freedom OF religion, not freedom FROM religion, as part of our freedom of speech. In others words, we are to be tolerant of all forms of speech, even if we don't agree....that's what a diverse and tolerant society does... If you want to see what the opposite viewpoint results in look at Nazi Germany or the Taliban controlled Afghanistan. It seems the only ones tolerated today are the intolerant.

[TheBsheep]

@quiteobserver lol....ur silly

[quiteobserver]

She got nice tits !

[cdude100]

god did not help her she helped her self its called self help and improvement and why don't school say pledge of allegiance any more?

[fpoon36]

While I won't get into the debate on whether or not she should have been allowed to talk about her religion, I will say that it is my understanding that it was understood that she wasn't allowed to mention it in her speech. She broke the rules, so she honestly should have expected this to happen.

[hillaryhater3]

@NightGuardianAngel its unconstitutional if the SCHOOL is proselytizing, not the student who is free to speak as she pleases

if anything, the school is unconstitutional for taking away her most basic right, freedom of speech. she was just explaining how God influenced her life and success