The U.S. Supreme Court just passed on a case that had conservative culture warriors clutching their pearls. At the center of the storm: a 12-year-old middle schooler from Massachusetts who wanted to wear a T-shirt declaring “There are only two genders” to class. His school said nope, and now, so has the nation’s highest court.
The student, Liam Morrison, backed by his dad, stepmom, and a legal team straight out of right-wing central casting, had sued his school district after being told to either change the shirt or leave. He chose to exit — and later returned wearing the same tee, with the words “only two” censored by tape. That earned him a second trip to the principal’s office. A federal appeals court sided with the school, and now the Supreme Court has effectively let that ruling stand by refusing to hear the appeal.
Middleborough school officials said the slogan wasn’t just controversial — it was harmful. The court record revealed that LGBTQ+ students had experienced suicidal ideation and trauma, some directly related to how peers treated them. The school cited its dress code, which bans clothing with hate speech or that targets people based on gender identity or sexual orientation. It didn’t take a Supreme Court robe to see how the shirt crossed the line.
Free Speech or Targeted Harm?
Liam’s lawyers tried to wrap the case in the warm blanket of the First Amendment. But the courts weren’t buying it. The appeals court ruled the school was right to believe that the shirt could significantly disrupt education and harm the mental health of transgender and nonbinary students. School, after all, is supposed to be a safe space — not a battleground for ideologically-charged slogans that invalidate kids’ identities.
Conservative Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas did dissent, suggesting the issue deserved the court’s attention. Alito claimed the lower courts were “confused” on balancing student rights with school policies. But their dissent wasn’t enough to resurrect the case.
The lawyers behind Liam — from a conservative Christian legal organization — argued that denying a kid the right to wear such a shirt was an attack on freedom of thought. But let’s be real: There’s a big difference between expressing an opinion and undermining the existence of fellow students. T-shirts aren’t neutral when they single out an already-vulnerable group.
Why This Matters for the LGBTQ+ Community
This wasn’t just about a shirt. It was a test case for anti-LGBTQ+ advocates looking to chip away at hard-won rights under the guise of “free speech.” Letting a message like “There are only two genders” roam unchecked in a school setting sends a chilling message to trans and nonbinary youth: You don’t belong.
In an era where anti-trans sentiment is being legislated from classrooms to clinics, the court’s quiet rejection of this case sends a subtle but powerful message: Hate speech doesn’t get a pass just because it’s printed on cotton.
With the Supreme Court poised to rule on a major case about gender-affirming care for minors by the end of June, all eyes remain fixed on how far the justices are willing to go — or not — when it comes to trans rights. For now, LGBTQ+ students can breathe a little easier knowing that, at least in this case, their safety still matters more than someone else’s “right” to invalidate their identity.