Indian Prairie School District 204 should allow students to express their sentiments about homosexuality by wearing "Be happy, not gay" T-shirts, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois.

The ACLU filed a legal brief that supports Neuqua students in their lawsuit against District 204. In its Monday release, the ACLU summarize the conclusion of its brief.

"First, the school's speech policy is unlawful on its face, because it broadly prohibits all speech that disparages protected classes, rather than carefully distinguishing protected speech from unprotected harassment," the release said. "Second, the school last spring should have allowed two students on one day to wear the 'Be happy, not gay' T-shirts."

This case arose two years ago after Neuqua students' varied recognitions of the annual Day of Silence, during which students are allowed to not talk throughout the school day unless doing so interferes with their grades. Sponsored by the school's Gay/Straight Alliance, the day is intended to "echo" the silence that students who are gay face all the time. During the Day of Silence, students often wear written messages on shirts, buttons and stickers showing their support of peers who are gay.

Two years ago, though, Heidi Zamecnik, then a junior at Neuqua, decided to wear the "Be happy, not gay" T-shirt the day after the Day of Silence, which some call the Day of Truth. According to the federal lawsuit Zamecnik filed against Indian Prairie District 204 board and various district and school administrators, she was told she had to remove the shirt or leave school because some students and staff found it offensive.

Zamecnik has since graduated, but the Alliance Defense Fund is still trying to suspend the school's policy on these T-shirts until the federal court case can be settled.

Online: http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/801027,6_1_NA19_TSHIRT_S1.article.