School Backs Down And Allows Pro-life Club

LAS VEGAS – Just how frequently do public schools get away with violating students’ rights, just because most students don’t know their rights, or how to find legal help when they need it?

One student, Angelique Clark of Las Vegas, is one bright student who refused to be trampled on.

Last December Clark filed an application to form a pro-life club for students at her school, the West Career and Technical Academy in the Clark County (Las Vegas) school district.

In February she learned the school’s assistant principal had denied the application for a variety of reasons: he considered abortion “controversial,” pro-choice students would feel “left out,” and other people were more qualified than Clark to speak out on the issue, according to a release from the Thomas More Society.

Clark enlisted the aid of her national organization, Students for Life of America, which retains the Thomas More Society for legal representation.

The Thomas More Society got involved with Clark’s case and sent a letter to the school district, citing clear legal arguments and demanding approval of the club by June 1, 2015. No response came back, so the Thomas More Society filed a lawsuit on Clark’s behalf in mid-August.

That did the trick.

This week the school district formally approved Clark’s application to form a student pro-life club, with no strings attached.

School district General Counsel Carlos McDade formally confirmed on Aug. 31 “that Angelique Clark will be allowed to form a non-curriculum related, non-school sponsored, student initiated, student led pro-life group at West Career & Technical Academy.”

Not only do Clark and her fellow club members have a First Amendment right to express their views, but they are protected by the Equal Access Act of 1984, a federal law which guarantees equal rights for students religious groups.

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