Online Conversation:
Tinker v. Des Moines School Plaintiffs
 Mary Beth Tinker |
 JohnTinker |
 Christopher Eckhardt |
What does Tinker v. Des Moines mean to you?
Tinker was the student rights case of the Vietnam War protest era. The plaintiffs of the Tinker case have a special story to share with this generation of students.
In 1965, 13-year-old student Mary Beth Tinker; her 15-year-old brother, John; their 15-year-old friend, Christopher Eckhardt; and two other students wore black armbands to school to express their mourning for the dead and injured civilians and soldiers in the Vietnam conflict.
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| Christopher Eckhardt and his parents Des Moines School Board Meeting 1965 |
They were suspended from school in compliance with a recently enacted school district policy forbidding the wearing of armbands. Through their parents, the students filed a complaint at the United States District Court, requesting an injunction ordering the school district to reverse the punishment. When the students did not win at the district or appellate court levels, they petitioned their case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in their favor.
The American Bar Association Division for Public Education encourages you to celebrate Law Day (May 1) with "Conversations with Leaders in the Law." In honor of this year's Law Day theme, "Celebrate Your Freedom," Mary Beth and John Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt have agreed to share their unique experiences in an electronic "Conversation" with students across the country by means of the Internet.
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| John Tinker, Mary Beth Tinker, and Christopher Eckhardt |
In March 1998, the Division for Public Education announced this internet "Conversation" with the Tinker plaintiffs on the ABA Web site, on the National Council for the Social Studies' Web site and sent a mailing to law-related education leaders and law magnet schools across the nation. Interested schools were encouraged to submit questions for the Tinker plaintiffs to a special Email address during the week of March 23-27. Over 130 questions were received from 27 schools. A selection of the questions were forwarded to Mary Beth and John Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt for their responses.
Take a look at the case summary and then read the questions and answers. To enrich the learning experience, review the brief biographies of Mary Beth and John Tinker and Christopher Eckhardt and explore other resources about the Tinker case.
Check out these Additional Resources from:
The Oyez Supreme Court Database
Online Conversations
| Tinker Conversation | Case Summary | Questions
and Answers
Biographies | Resources
| Schools
