Parents in New Hampshire are suing the school district for banning them for “silent protest” against a trans football player

A group of New Hampshire parents and a grandparent filed a lawsuit Monday against a school district for expelling them from a girls' soccer game for protesting a transgender player.

Kyle Fellers, Anthony Foote, Nicole Foote and Eldon Rash filed the federal lawsuit against the Bow School District, Principal Marcy Kelley, Principal Matt Fisk, Athletic Director Mike Desilets, Bow Police Lieutenant Phil Lamy and soccer referee Steve Rossetti.

The lawsuit states that on Sept. 17, Fellers and Anthony Foote were ejected from a girls' soccer game between Bow High School and Plymouth Regional High School, where they wore pink bracelets with “XX” written on them to represent the female chromosome structure symbolize and express their support for biology female athletes.

The “silent protest” at Bow High School, the lawsuit says, was aimed at showing “solidarity” with the Bow team and opposing a policy that allowed a transgender girl to be on Plymouth's team to play.

NEW HAMPSHIRE PARENTS BANNED FOR WEARING BRACELETS TO SUPPORT WOMEN'S SPORTS TO DAUGHTER'S FOOTBALL MATCH

A group of New Hampshire parents sued a school district over their exclusion from a girls' soccer game for protesting a transgender player. (Getty Images)

Bow school officials and a police officer confronted the plaintiffs during the game and asked them to remove the wristbands, the lawsuit says. But when the plaintiffs refused to remove them, a referee allegedly paused the game and said Bow would be forced to forfeit the game if the wristbands were not removed.

Fellers and Anthony Foote were given no trespass orders, banning them from entering school grounds and events following the incident. This also included the ban on picking up their children from extracurricular lessons. Anthony Foote was suspended until September 23, while Fellers was banned from returning for the remainder of the fall semester.

“Parents do not surrender their First Amendment rights at the entrance to a school’s soccer field,” Fellers said in a statement. “We wore pink bracelets to silently support our daughters and their right to fair competition. Instead of encouraging open dialogue, school officials responded with threats and bans that directly impact our lives and those of our children. And this fight is not fair about sport – it is about protecting our fundamental right to freedom of expression.”

The “silent protest” at Bow High School, the lawsuit says, was aimed at showing “solidarity” with the Bow team and opposing a policy that allowed a transgender girl to be on Plymouth's team to play. (ALLISON DINNER/AFP via Getty Images)

The lawsuit seeks to prevent the “unconstitutional application” of several school policies, including those that require “mutual respect, civility and orderly conduct” and prohibit actions that “hurt, threaten, harass or intimidate” or “obstruct school policy.” , delay or delay”. Interfere with or otherwise interfere with school activities or functions.”

The plaintiffs asked the court to prohibit the school from using these policies to restrict the unhindered expression of political or social views at school events, including silently wearing wristbands or posting signs in the parking lot discouraging transgender girls from competing to allow girls' competitions. Sports teams.

“The idea that I would be censored and threatened with exclusion from a public event for standing up for my beliefs is not just a personal insult – it is a violation of the very rights I swore to defend,” Anthony Foote said. “I spent 31 years in the U.S. Army, including three combat tours, and the school district in the city where I was born – the city where my family has seven generations of history – stripped me of those rights. I sometimes wonder if I should do that. We were here fighting for our rights and not abroad.”

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The lawsuit aims to prevent the “unconstitutional application” of several school policies. (Getty Images)

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Earlier this month, a federal judge temporarily blocked a New Hampshire law that bans transgender women from playing on sports teams based on their preferred gender identity.