Students attending Spring Valley High School may no longer wear necklaces made out of hemp fiber, according to a new policy enacted by educators this year. Administrators at the school said the ban was necessary because the necklaces are representative of the marijuana drug culture.
“School officials’ purpose for banning hemp jewelry likely violates students’ constitutionally protected rights to speech,” said Tanya Kangas, Esq., director of litigation for The NORML Foundation.
Steven Bates, executive director of the state American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), also voiced opposition to the new policy. “The authoritarian nature of schools is becoming ridiculous,” he said. “It’s silly. You could smoke it (hemp) all day long and not get high.”
Spring Valley Assistant Principal Genny White defended the ban. “Even though we know there are other legitimate uses for hemp, we don’t think it is appropriate for school,” she said.
Presently, the hemp ban applies only to necklaces. The policy does not prohibit students from wearing hemp clothing such as hemp T-shirts or shoes, and does not forbid the use of hemp cosmetic products like lip balm.
The school’s dress code previously banned students from wearing T-shirts with designs suggestive of drug, tobacco, or alcohol use.
In past years, a handful of high schools have attempted to enforce similar bans on hemp jewelry. Notably, North High School in Eastlake, Ohio outlawed hemp jewelry in 1996, but stopped enforcing the measure after pressure from the state NORML affiliate and the ACLU.
For more information, please contact either Allen St. Pierre or Tanya Kangas of The NORML Foundation @ (202) 483-8751.