High Court's First Week Includes School District Harassment Case

Justices decline to hear cases on school speech, acceptance of gays.

Washington

The U.S. Supreme Court opened its new term last week, hearing arguments in a case involving alleged sexual harassment in a school district central office, while declining review of several education-related appeals.

The justices refused to hear the appeal of two Massachusetts families who claimed violations of their rights when public schools exposed their children to books promoting tolerance for gay marriage. The court also refused to take up two First Amendment cases in schools, one involving student speech and the other about a teacher’s right of access to school mailboxes.

In the harassment case, the justices will interpret part of the main federal employment-discrimination law. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in the workplace based on race, sex, and other factors, and it covers sexual harassment. One provision of Title VII is designed to prohibit retaliation by employers against those who “opposed” an unlawful employment practice or “made a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing” related to...