Texas high school allows D&D, anime clubs on campus while refusing pro-life club

Students for Life of America (SFLA) has announced that it is providing legal assistance to a Texas high school student who was told that he could not start an SFLA chapter at his local public high school.

According to SFLA, the student attempted to start the club at Pioneer Technical Arts Academy in Greenville, Texas. After filing for official group status, he was told that the school would not recognize a nonacademic club. Despite this claim, the school advertises a variety of other nonacademic clubs, including a Dungeons and Dragons club, eSports club, and anime club.

SFLA believes that the student’s First Amendment rights are being violated due to the fact that the school does not want a pro-life club on campus. They have sent a demand letter to the school requesting clarification regarding its club policy, and plan to pursue further action if necessary.

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“It is very common for pro-life students to get rejected, censored, and discriminated against by their own administration, even still in Texas. I just hope that’s not what is going on here at PTAA. If it unfortunately turns out to be so, SFLA will go immediately to bat for our students. We don’t allow First Amendment violations, period,” said SFLA Legal Correspondent Olivia Garza.

This isn’t the first time that a student has faced roadblocks after trying to start a pro-life club on a high school campus. In December 2021, a freshman student in Noblesville, Indiana, filed a lawsuit against her high school after it revoked approval for a Noblesville Students for Life chapter on campus. SFLA is supporting the student in that lawsuit, which is currently in litigation despite the school district’s attempt to have the case thrown out.

“A right to free speech or freedom of assembly only really exists when you can exercise those freedoms,” SFLA President Kristan Hawkins previously said. “At Students for Life of America, we’ve seen how personal engagement with loving, pro-life friends saves lives, and we are proud to fight for our student’s right to have a voice in her school.”