An appeals court sided with the parents of New Hampshire students who accused school officials of banning them from events after they wore wristbands to protest a transgender player's participation in a girls' soccer game in 2024, finding the display "fell short of harassment and disruption."
A district court previously denied the parents' request for a preliminary injunction, which would have prohibited Bow High School, just south of Concord, New Hampshire, from banning the parents from school property and events while litigation continued. The First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in its Aug. 26 opinion that the parents had a "reasonable likelihood" of proving that the school’s actions were based on unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination,
sending the case back to the district court for further proceedings.
Del Kolde, a senior attorney at the Institute for Free Speech, which is representing the students' family members, said in the organization’s Aug. 26 news release that the ruling "reaffirms parents have a right to silently express their views on controversial issues" regardless of whether school officials disagree.
"If school officials allow expression supporting one side of a political debate, they cannot ban silent, peaceful expression on the other side," Kolde said. "Our clients simply stood up for their First Amendment rights."
Kyle Fellers, one of the parents involved in the lawsuit, called the decision "a victory not just for our family, but for every parent who believes they have the right to peacefully express their views at a public event."
USA TODAY reached out to Bow School District for comment.
Court: Wristbands were 'passive, silent gesture of protest'
Transgender students Parker Tirrell and Iris Turmelle, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire, sued state and district officials in August 2024 over a state law enacted earlier in the year that barred schools from allowing athletes to play on teams that don’t align with their biological sex. A district court granted a preliminary injunction allowing Tirrell and Turmelle to play or try out for girls’ sports teams while the case proceeded.
Ahead of a September 2024 soccer game in which Tirrell was scheduled to play for the opposing team, Fellers – along with Anthony Foote and Nicole Foote, parents of another player – "expressed their opposition" to transgender athletes participating in girls' sports, the court’s opinion said. The parents sought support, with some reaching out to school officials and others posting on social media urging people to attend the game in support of the Bow High School players as they "face a team that includes a biological male on the roster."
Anthony Foote handed out wristbands with "XX," a reference to female sex chromosomes, to a handful of attendees during the game, the opinion said. Michael Desilets, Bow High School's athletic director, soon asked Anthony Foote to remove the wristband, which he complied with after initially refusing. Fellers then refused to do the same, prompting Desilets to consult with Principal Matt Fisk and Bow Police Department Lt. Philip Lamy.
Lamy said Fellers "must remove the wristband or leave the game," and Fellers complied, the court said. Fellers' father-in-law, Eldon Rash, then put the wristband on. Referee Steve Rosetti stopped the game shortly after and said “play would not resume" until Rash removed it, according to the court.
Bow School District soon issued no-trespass orders that banned Fellers and Anthony Foote from entering district property or attending sporting or other extracurricular events. Fellers, Anthony and Nicole Foote and Rash collectively sued the district, as well as individuals representing the school, the police department, and the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association later that month.
USA TODAY reached out to the officials involved for comment.
The U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire denied their motion for a preliminary injunction in 2025, finding that the school district's rules and regulations were "reasonable, viewpoint neutral and consistent with the schools’ pedagogical goals." The school, according to the court, reasonably believed the protest "targeted a specific transgender student" and "demeaned a core immutable characteristic of their personal identity."
The appeals court disagreed in its Aug. 26 opinion, describing the wristbands as a "passive, silent gesture of protest."
"The appellants did not stage any pregame demonstrations; did not march, shout, chant or otherwise disrupt the game; and did not confront Tirrell or any other player," the court said, adding that there was no evidence any player ever saw the wristbands.
The district court was ordered to reconsider the case in light of the appeals court's findings.
BrieAnna Frank is a First Amendment reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at bjfrank@usatoday.com. USA TODAY's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. Funders do not provide editorial input.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Court sides with parents who protested trans athlete with wristbands
