Parkland High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania has banned a pro-life club, calling it “too controversial,” according to high school student and club creator Liz Castro. Castro appeared with Students for Life of America president Kristan Hawkins on Tucker Carlson Tonight on June 5, 2017, to tell her story.
“They told me that we couldn’t have our club because it was too controversial and too political at the time,” Castro said. “I think they were definitely discriminating against us because we were pro-life.”
Castro said that her group, Trojans for Life, met all of the requirements necessary to form a club; however, the school official denied them because of the club’s pro-life stance. According to Life Site News, The Thomas More Society is assisting the students and has written a letter to the school principal and superintendent informing them that they have violated the students’ rights.
“There is absolutely no question that the law protects the right of these students to form this club at their high school,” Thomas More Special Council Jocelyn Floyd told Life Site News.
This isn’t the first time a school has attempted to prevent a pro-life group from forming.
“We’ve seen this in dozens of high school and college campuses across the country,” said Hawkins, citing various ongoing free speech lawsuits for pro-life groups. “[…] A few administrators who do not like pro-life speech feel that they have the right to censor it.”
Castro said her group will not give up. Though she is a senior and won’t be back at the high school next year to try and start the club again, another student will continue to fight.
