Smithsonian agrees to pay students $50k after kicking them out for wearing pro-life hats

[Michie]

The settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum is one of the largest ever against the federal government over the First Amendment, according to the American Center for Law and Justice.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) — The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) has reached a final settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum on behalf of a group of visitors discriminated against for wearing pro-life messages on their clothing, touting “one of the largest reported settlements ever against the federal government in a First Amendment case.”

On January 20, 2023, shortly after that year’s March for Life in the nation’s capital (the first since the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade), a group of Catholics from Our Lady of the Rosary school in Greenville, South Carolina, were kicked out of the Smithsonian for wearing hats bearing the words “Rosary PRO-LIFE.” The next month, Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III saidthe incident “was an aberration and not reflective of Smithsonian values and practice of welcoming all visitors regardless of viewpoint,” promising a “refresher” on museum policy for staff and policy reviews prior to any major political demonstration in the nation’s capital.

Continued below.

Smithsonian agrees to pay students $50k after kicking them out for wearing pro-life hats - LifeSite

The settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum is one of the largest ever against the federal government over the First Amendment, according to the American Center for Law and Justice.

www.lifesitenews.com

 

[AlexB23]

The settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum is one of the largest ever against the federal government over the First Amendment, according to the American Center for Law and Justice.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) — The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) has reached a final settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum on behalf of a group of visitors discriminated against for wearing pro-life messages on their clothing, touting “one of the largest reported settlements ever against the federal government in a First Amendment case.”

On January 20, 2023, shortly after that year’s March for Life in the nation’s capital (the first since the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade), a group of Catholics from Our Lady of the Rosary school in Greenville, South Carolina, were kicked out of the Smithsonian for wearing hats bearing the words “Rosary PRO-LIFE.” The next month, Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III saidthe incident “was an aberration and not reflective of Smithsonian values and practice of welcoming all visitors regardless of viewpoint,” promising a “refresher” on museum policy for staff and policy reviews prior to any major political demonstration in the nation’s capital.

Continued below.

Smithsonian agrees to pay students $50k after kicking them out for wearing pro-life hats - LifeSite

The settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum is one of the largest ever against the federal government over the First Amendment, according to the American Center for Law and Justice.

www.lifesitenews.com

Man, this one is sad. I am a huge science museum guy, and enjoy going to museums on vacations. It is sad how freedom of speech was taken away from these students. Now, if the students were wearing AK gun logos, then it is okay to feel uncomfortable if I was the operator of the museum, but wearing a pro-life hat or shirt is harmless.

Here is a quick summary of the article, for those who haven't read it:

The American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) announced a significant settlement with the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum on behalf of a group of visitors who were discriminated against for wearing pro-life messages on their clothing. This incident, which occurred in January 2023 after the March for Life event in Washington D.C., is reportedly one of the largest settlements against the federal government in a First Amendment case.

The incident involved a group of Catholics from Our Lady of the Rosary school in Greenville, South Carolina, who were removed from the Smithsonian for wearing hats with the words "Rosary PRO-LIFE." Museum Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III initially described this as an isolated incident that was not representative of the museum's values, and promised policy reviews and staff training to prevent such occurrences. However, he also stated that the offenders would not be penalized for a misunderstanding of museum rules.

Negotiations for settlement fell through last September without an agreement, but were resumed earlier this year. As a result, the Smithsonian has agreed to pay $50,000, provide the plaintiffs with a private tour led by museum director Christopher Browne, offer personal apologies, and distribute reports on the incident as well as clarifications of the permissibility of religious and political speech on apparel.

ACLJ also represented another group of March for Life participants who experienced a similar incident at the National Archives museum. In this case, security personnel instructed visitors to remove or conceal their pro-life messages on their clothing if they wished to remain in the museum. The firm secured an apology and explanation from the National Archives & Records Administration (NARA), which ultimately led to a settlement in which NARA agreed to pay $10,000 to the plaintiffs and take steps to prevent future discrimination against visitors.

ACLJ executive director Jordan Sekulow expressed gratitude for the clients' courage in standing up for their rights and seeking answers about the incident. The clients were determined to uncover the truth behind the discrimination and prevent future occurrences.

 

[Wolseley]

My sister has given me a subscription to the Smithsonian magazine as a Christmas gift for several years now. I enjoy reading the articles that interest me, but I do have to say that I am also annoyed with the magazine's woke leftist slant, and the constant drum-beating of race that fill its pages these days. Everything they publish, it seems, has to relate back to race and the worn-out old specter of "White oppression", blah, blah, blah, blah.

I read Lonnie Bunch's articles in every issue, and if his muted racial radicalism is indicative of the mindset within the Smithsonian these days, then the institution's current lefto-racist positions do not surprise me in the slightest. I am old enough to remember when the Smithsonian was about scientific discovery, historical research, etc.; but, like a lot of things in the erstwhile "United" States, it has quite obviously decayed into another woke soapbox, where no matter if the topic is antebellum slavery or the breeding habits of gastropod species in the Amazon basin, it has got to contain reference to the supposedly evil suppressionist Caucasians, dem wicked debbils.

It really gets tiresome after a while.

 

[Michie]

My sister has given me a subscription to the Smithsonian magazine as a Christmas gift for several years now. I enjoy reading the articles that interest me, but I do have to say that I am also annoyed with the magazine's woke leftist slant, and the constant drum-beating of race that fill its pages these days. Everything they publish, it seems, has to relate back to race and the worn-out old specter of "White oppression", blah, blah, blah, blah.

I read Lonnie Bunch's articles in every issue, and if his muted racial radicalism is indicative of the mindset within the Smithsonian these days, then the institution's current lefto-racist positions do not surprise me in the slightest. I am old enough to remember when the Smithsonian was about scientific discovery, historical research, etc.; but, like a lot of things in the erstwhile "United" States, it has quite obviously decayed into another woke soapbox, where no matter if the topic is antebellum slavery or the breeding habits of gastropod species in the Amazon basin, it has got to contain reference to the supposedly evil suppressionist Caucasians, dem wicked debbils.

It really gets tiresome after a while.

I stopped subscribing. I cannot stand feeling like I’m being brainwashed. No matter how much I enjoy certain topics and pictorials.

 

[Wolseley]

I stopped subscribing. I cannot stand feeling like I’m being brainwashed. No matter how much I enjoy certain topics and pictorials.

Yeah, I know. But I continue to take it because she's my only sister left, and she doesn't have a whole lot to give.....if I were to refuse it, she would be hurt, and I would not intentionally hurt her for anything in the world.

 

[Michie]

Oh for sure. I completely understand that. I subscribed myself and unsubscribed myself. It’s just that the problem for me is trying to enjoy a subjects we enjoy free of agendas. I rare thing these days. If it were a gift from a loved one, I’d just have to pick and choose what I delved into as far as the articles in the magazine. I just got tired of doing it. And since I ordered myself, I thought I’d save myself the frustration.

 

[Wolseley]

It’s just that the problem for me is trying to enjoy a subjects we enjoy free of agendas. I rare thing these days.

You got that right.

If it were a gift from a loved one, I’d just have to pick and choose what I delved into as far as the articles in the magazine. I just got tired of doing it.

Precisely.

 

[RileyG]

The United states doesn’t like to stand up for life. It’s embarrassing.

 

[RocK Guy]

Smithsonian agrees to pay students $50k after kicking them out for wearing pro-life hats

Where is this place at?

I could use $50k so I'd like to get me a pro life hat and go there to collect my check too!