Warren E. Burger

“ The undoubted freedom to advocate unpopular and controversial views in schools and classrooms must be balanced against the society's countervailing interest in teaching students the boundaries of socially appropriate behavior. ”

“ It is against this background that we turn to consider the level of First Amendment protection accorded to Fraser's utterances and actions before an official high school assembly attended by 600 students.
III The role and purpose of the American public school system were well described by two historians, who stated: “ [P] ublic education must prepare pupils for citizenship in the Republic.... It must inculcate the habits and manners of civility as values in themselves conducive to happiness and as indispensable to the practice of self-government in the community and the nation.” ”

“ Norwick, 441 U.S. 68, 76-77, 99 S.Ct. 1589, 1594, 60 L.Ed.2d 49 (1979) , we echoed the essence of this statement of the objectives of public education as the “inculcat [ion of] fundamental values necessary to the maintenance of a democratic political system.” ”

“ Unlike the sanctions imposed on the students wearing armbands in Tinker, the penalties imposed in this case were unrelated to any political viewpoint. The First Amendment does not prevent the school officials from determining that to permit a vulgar and lewd speech such as respondent's would undermine the school's basic educational mission. A high school assembly or classroom is no place for a sexually explicit monologue directed towards an unsuspecting audience of teenage students. ”

“ The Commission concluded that “certain words depicted sexual and excretory activitites in a patently offensive manner, [and] noted [p685] that they ‘were broadcast at a time when children were undoubtedly in the audience.’ ” The Commission issued an order declaring that the radio station was guilty of broadcasting indecent language in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1464. 438 U.S., at 732, 98 S.Ct., at 3031. The Court of Appeals set aside the Commission's determination, and we reversed, reinstating the Commission's citation of the station. ”