PETITION TO ABOLISH ZERO-TOLERANCE POLICIES ON STUDENT SELF-DEFENSE
PETITION TO ABOLISH ZERO-TOLERANCE POLICIES ON STUDENT SELF-DEFENSE
The Issue
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
We are calling upon the administration to end outdated institutional "zero-tolerance" policies that punish victims of bullying and assault for exercising their fundamental right to self-defense. It is time we stop punishing survival and bring reason, legal precedent, and basic human dignity back into our schools.
THE ISSUE: THE CRIMINALIZATION OF SURVIVAL
We continue to hear personal accounts of where the system has failed to protect our students. We must ask: How many more students each week can we expect to fail because of outdated institutional policy?
In 1969, the United States Supreme Court delivered a ruling in Tinker v. Des Moines, declaring that students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." Yet, today, our schools enforce "zero-tolerance" policies that force students to shed an even more fundamental right the moment they step onto campus: the right to bodily security and self-defense.
In the adult world self-defense is not a loophole; it is a principle of common law. If an individual is attacked on the street, the law recognizes their right to use a proportionate amount of force to protect themselves.
Inside our schools, however, we have created an alternate legal universe. When a student is cornered, bullied, or physically assaulted, our current policies treat the victim exactly the same way they treat the aggressor.
We commend the school for investigating past incidents, but we must equip our educators to navigate beyond these outdated frameworks and penalize the correct parties effectively.
OUR DEMAND
We demand the implementation of a legally sound school policy that mirrors real-world law. Specifically, this policy must:
Abolish zero-tolerance punishments that automatically suspend or expel victims who defend themselves.
Recognize the right to self-defense, demanding that the force used by a victim is strictly to stop the threat, and nothing more.
Protect victims rather than penalizing them for natural survival instincts.
2
The Issue
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
We are calling upon the administration to end outdated institutional "zero-tolerance" policies that punish victims of bullying and assault for exercising their fundamental right to self-defense. It is time we stop punishing survival and bring reason, legal precedent, and basic human dignity back into our schools.
THE ISSUE: THE CRIMINALIZATION OF SURVIVAL
We continue to hear personal accounts of where the system has failed to protect our students. We must ask: How many more students each week can we expect to fail because of outdated institutional policy?
In 1969, the United States Supreme Court delivered a ruling in Tinker v. Des Moines, declaring that students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." Yet, today, our schools enforce "zero-tolerance" policies that force students to shed an even more fundamental right the moment they step onto campus: the right to bodily security and self-defense.
In the adult world self-defense is not a loophole; it is a principle of common law. If an individual is attacked on the street, the law recognizes their right to use a proportionate amount of force to protect themselves.
Inside our schools, however, we have created an alternate legal universe. When a student is cornered, bullied, or physically assaulted, our current policies treat the victim exactly the same way they treat the aggressor.
We commend the school for investigating past incidents, but we must equip our educators to navigate beyond these outdated frameworks and penalize the correct parties effectively.
OUR DEMAND
We demand the implementation of a legally sound school policy that mirrors real-world law. Specifically, this policy must:
Abolish zero-tolerance punishments that automatically suspend or expel victims who defend themselves.
Recognize the right to self-defense, demanding that the force used by a victim is strictly to stop the threat, and nothing more.
Protect victims rather than penalizing them for natural survival instincts.
2
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on May 5, 2026