Historic front page from Des Moines Register, Feb. 24, 1969: Students win free speech case

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In a landmark free speech case, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 24, 1969, rules in favor of three Des Moines students who in 1965 were banned from wearing black arm bands to school to protest the Vietnam War, as reported in the Des Moines Register's sister paper, the Tribune. The district had argued that banning protests in school was necessary to maintain order, while the attorney for Mary Beth and John Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt said it was an infringement of their right to free speech. Justice Abe Fortas famously writes, “It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate."

Each day this month, as the Register marks its 175th birthday, we’re sharing front pages from noteworthy moments in history.