Boyd County High School Gay Straight Alliance v. Board of Education
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky
258 F. Supp. 2d 667 (2003)
Students (plaintiffs) at Boyd County High School (BCHS) (defendant) formed a Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) Club in 2002 to provide a safe space to discuss anti-gay harassment and promote tolerance; BCHS already allowed at least one other non-curricular student group to use its facilities. When the GSA Club was proposed, student protests and numerous parental complaints followed, almost entirely from opponents of the club, with only one incident involving GSA supporters. The students sought a preliminary injunction requiring BCHS to give the GSA Club the same facility access as other student groups.
Whether a school may deny a student group equal access to school facilities because student and community opposition to that group threatens to substantially interfere with the school's ability to maintain order and discipline.