by Jorge Gomez • 1 minute
On Thursday, First Liberty secured a victory for high school student Zion Ramos. A teacher at Arkansas Connections Academy muted and removed Zion from an online meeting when he began sharing his faith with other students.
We sent a letter to the school demanding that it no longer censor or violate the free speech and religious expression of students, now and in the future.
Every day, students have a “social time” Zoom meeting to talk about whatever they want, provided the comments are not violent, vulgar or obscene. Inspired by the recent memorial service for Charlie Kirk, Zion felt compelled to share his faith in a two-minute statement.
Suddenly, the teacher muted him. Once he realized he was muted, Zion unmuted himself to continue sharing his message. However, as he continued to speak, the teacher removed him from the Zoom call. A few minutes later, the meeting was shut down entirely.
In less than 72 hours, the school responded favorably to our letter. School officials agreed to grant Zion three minutes to share his faith at an upcoming social time event, as First Liberty requested.
School officials also confirmed that they will support the free speech and free exercise rights of students and complete religious liberty training through the RESPECT Project within 60 days.
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders expressed interest in the situation and instructed the Arkansas Department of Education to open an investigation into the matter.
“We are grateful that school officials acknowledge how concerning this situation was for Zion and his family, and that federal and state law protect students’ religious expression during social gatherings,” said Kayla Toney, Counsel for First Liberty. “Zion looks forward to sharing his faith during a future social time.”
“I’m glad the school agreed to do the right thing,” said Zion. “Freedom of speech isn’t just a right, it’s the foundation of our liberty. Christians must stand up, speak out, and defend our right to share what we believe.”
Thank you for supporting First Liberty. You share a special part in victories like this one, which make a huge difference in the lives of Americans.
This victory is incredibly impactful to Zion and other students at his school. Moving forward, students won’t have to worry about being censored for sharing their faith or beliefs. Because the school did the right thing and followed the law, students can fully and freely express their beliefs with their peers—as the Constitution and the law says they can.
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