# Substantial disruption

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Criterion set forth by the United States Supreme Court

The **substantial disruption** test is a criterion set forth by the [United States Supreme Court](/source/United_States_Supreme_Court), in the leading case of *[Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District](/source/Tinker_v._Des_Moines_Independent_Community_School_District)*, 393 U.S. 503 (1969).[1] The test is used to determine whether an act by a U.S. public school official (State actor) has abridged a student's constitutionally protected [First Amendment](/source/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution) rights of free speech.

The test, as set forth in the Tinker opinion, asks the question: Did the speech or expression of the student "materially and substantially interfere with the requirements of appropriate discipline in the operation of the school," or might it "reasonably have led school authorities to forecast substantial disruption of or material interference with school activities?" The case holds that to justify suppression of speech, school officials would need to show that the conduct in question would "materially and substantially interfere" with the operation of the school.[2]

## Notes

1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEAlexanderAlexander2011409_1-0)** [Alexander & Alexander 2011](#CITEREFAlexanderAlexander2011), p. 409: In Tinker, the Supreme Court established the “material and substantial disruption” test to protect the freedom of speech and expression in public schools. Here, the Court made it clear that school authorities are not permitted to deny a student ...

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** *[Tinker v. Des Moines Indep. Cmty. Sch. Dist.](/source/Tinker_v._Des_Moines_Indep._Cmty._Sch._Dist.)*, 393 U.S. 503 (1969).

## References

- Alexander, K.; Alexander, M.D. (2011). [*American Public School Law*](https://books.google.com/books?id=irnJsfcrOd0C&pg=PA409). Cengage Learning. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-495-91049-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-495-91049-7). Retrieved 30 September 2018.

v t e U.S. Supreme Court Freedom of Speech Clause case law First Amendment to the United States Constitution Unprotected speech Clear and present danger and imminent lawless action Schenck v. United States (1919) Debs v. United States (1919) Abrams v. United States (1919) Gitlow v. New York (1925) Whitney v. California (1927) Fiske v. Kansas (1927) Dennis v. United States (1951) Communist Party v. Subversive Activities Control Bd. (1955; 1961) Yates v. United States (1957) Bond v. Floyd (1966) Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) Hess v. Indiana (1973) Defamation and false speech New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964) Hustler Magazine v. Falwell (1988) United States v. Alvarez (2012) Susan B. Anthony List v. Driehaus (2014) Fighting words and the heckler's veto Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940) Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire (1942) Terminiello v. City of Chicago (1949) Feiner v. New York (1951) Gregory v. City of Chicago (1969) Cohen v. California (1971) Nat'l Socialist Party v. Village of Skokie (1977) R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul (1992) Snyder v. Phelps (2011) True threats Virginia v. Black (2003) Elonis v. United States (2015) Counterman v. Colorado (2023) Obscenity Rosen v. United States (1896) Roth v. United States (1957) One, Inc. v. Olesen (1958) Smith v. California (1959) Marcus v. Search Warrant (1961) Manual Enterprises, Inc. v. Day (1962) Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964) Quantity of Books v. Kansas (1964) Ginzburg v. United States (1966) Memoirs v. Massachusetts (1966) Redrup v. New York (1967) Ginsberg v. New York (1968) Stanley v. Georgia (1969) United States v. Thirty-seven Photographs (1971) Kois v. Wisconsin (1972) Miller v. California (1973) Paris Adult Theatre I v. Slaton (1973) United States v. 12 200-ft. Reels of Film (1973) Jenkins v. Georgia (1974) Erznoznik v. City of Jacksonville (1975) Young v. American Mini Theatres, Inc. (1976) People v. Freeman (Cal. 1988) United States v. X-Citement Video, Inc. (1994) Reno v. ACLU (1997) United States v. Playboy Entertainment Group, Inc. (2000) City of Los Angeles v. Alameda Books, Inc. (2002) Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union (2002) United States v. American Library Ass'n (2003) United States v. Williams (2008) FCC v. Fox Television Stations, Inc. (2009) United States v. Stevens (2010) Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Ass'n (2011) FCC v. Fox Television Stations, Inc. (2012) Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton (2025) Speech integral to criminal conduct New York v. Ferber (1982) Osborne v. Ohio (1990) Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition (2002) United States v. Hansen (2023) Strict scrutiny Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project (2010) Williams-Yulee v. Florida Bar (2015) Overbreadth and Vagueness doctrines Terminiello v. City of Chicago (1949) Smith v. Goguen (1974) Board of Airport Commissioners v. Jews for Jesus (1987) Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky (2018) Symbolic speech versus conduct Stromberg v. California (1931) United States v. O'Brien (1968) Cohen v. California (1971) Spence v. Washington (1974) Clark v. Community for Creative Non-Violence (1984) Dallas v. Stanglin (1989) Texas v. Johnson (1989) United States v. Eichman (1990) Barnes v. Glen Theatre (1991) City of Erie v. Pap's A. M. (2000) Virginia v. Black (2003) Content-based restrictions Lamont v. Postmaster General (1965) Metromedia, Inc. v. San Diego (1981) Boos v. Barry (1988) Simon & Schuster, Inc. v. Crime Victims Board (1991) R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul (1992) Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015) Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants (2020) City of Austin v. Reagan National Advertising of Austin, LLC (2022) Content-neutral restrictions Schneider v. New Jersey (1939) United States v. Albertini (1985) Renton v. Playtime Theatres, Inc. (1986) Arcara v. Cloud Books, Inc. (1986) City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994) Packingham v. North Carolina (2017) TikTok v. Garland (2025) In the public forum Davis v. Massachusetts (1897) Hague v. CIO (1939) Thornhill v. Alabama (1940) Martin v. City of Struthers (1943) Niemotko v. Maryland (1951) Edwards v. South Carolina (1963) Cox v. Louisiana (1965) Brown v. Louisiana (1966) Adderley v. Florida (1966) Carroll v. Town of Princess Anne (1968) Coates v. City of Cincinnati (1971) Org. for a Better Austin v. Keefe (1971) Clark v. Community for Creative Non-Violence (1984) Frisby v. Schultz (1988) Ward v. Rock Against Racism (1989) Burson v. Freeman (1992) Madsen v. Women's Health Center, Inc. (1994) Schenck v. Pro-Choice Network of Western New York (1997) Hill v. Colorado (2000) McCullen v. Coakley (2014) Designated public forum Widmar v. Vincent (1981) Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia (1995) Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski (2021) Nonpublic forum Lehman v. Shaker Heights (1974) Perry Education Association v. Perry Local Educators' Association (1983) Cornelius v. NAACP Legal Defense Fund (1985) Arkansas Educational Television Commission v. Forbes (1997) Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky (2018) Compelled speech Minersville School District v. Gobitis (1940) West Virginia State Board of Ed. v. Barnette (1943) Miami Herald Publishing Co. v. Tornillo (1974) Wooley v. Maynard (1977) Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins (1980) Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. Public Utilities Comm'n of California (1986) Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston (1995) Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic & Institutional Rights, Inc. (2006) National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra (2018) 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis (2023) Moody v. NetChoice, LLC (2024) Compelled subsidy of others' speech International Ass'n of Machinists v. Street (1961) Abood v. Detroit Board of Education (1977) Minnesota Board for Community Colleges v. Knight (1984) Communications Workers of America v. Beck (1988) Keller v. State Bar of California (1990) Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Ass'n (1991) Board of Regents of the Univ. of Wisconsin System v. Southworth (2000) Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Ass'n (2005) Davenport v. Washington Education Ass'n (2007) Locke v. Karass (2008) Knox v. SEIU, Local 1000 (2012) Harris v. Quinn (2014) Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association (2016) Janus v. AFSCME (2018) Government grants and subsidies Regan v. Taxation with Representation of Washington (1983) Rust v. Sullivan (1991) National Endowment for the Arts v. Finley (1998) Legal Services Corp. v. Velazquez (2001) USAID v. Alliance for Open Society International I (2013) USAID v. Alliance for Open Society International II (2020) Government speech Pleasant Grove City v. Summum (2009) Walker v. Texas Div., Sons of Confederate Veterans (2015) Matal v. Tam (2017) Iancu v. Brunetti (2019) Houston Community College System v. Wilson (2022) Shurtleff v. City of Boston (2022) Vidal v. Elster (2024) Loyalty oaths American Communications Ass'n v. Douds (1950) Garner v. Board of Public Works (1951) Speiser v. Randall (1958) Keyishian v. Board of Regents (1967) Communist Party of Indiana v. Whitcomb (1974) School speech Minersville School District v. Gobitis (1940) West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943) Tinker v. Des Moines Ind. Community School Dist. (1969, substantial disruption) Healy v. James (1972) Island Trees School District v. Pico (1982) Bethel School District v. Fraser (1986) Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988) Westside Community Board of Ed. v. Mergens (1990) Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia (1995) Brentwood Academy v. Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Ass'n (2001) Morse v. Frederick (2007) Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski (2021) Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. (2021) Public employees Pickering v. Board of Education (1968) Perry v. Sindermann (1972) Arnett v. Kennedy (1974) Elrod v. Burns (1976) Mt. Healthy City School Dist. Board of Ed. v. Doyle (1977) Givhan v. Western Line Consol. School Dist. (1979) Connick v. Myers (1983) Rankin v. McPherson (1987) Rutan v. Republican Party of Illinois (1990) Waters v. Churchill (1994) United States v. National Treasury Employees Union (1995) Brentwood Academy v. Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Ass'n (2001) Garcetti v. Ceballos (2006) Borough of Duryea v. Guarnieri (2011) Lane v. Franks (2014) Heffernan v. City of Paterson (2016) Kennedy v. Bremerton School Dist. (2022) Hatch Act and similar laws Ex parte Curtis (1882) United Public Workers v. Mitchell (1947) U.S. Civil Service Comm'n v. National Ass'n of Letter Carriers (1973) Broadrick v. Oklahoma (1973) Licensing and restriction of speech Mutual Film Corp. v. Industrial Comm'n of Ohio (1915) Cox v. New Hampshire (1941) Murdock v. Pennsylvania (1943) Kunz v. New York (1951) Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson (1952) Kingsley Books, Inc. v. Brown (1957) NAACP v. Button (1963) Freedman v. Maryland (1965) Hoffman Estates v. The Flipside, Hoffman Estates, Inc. (1982) Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement (1992) Commercial speech Valentine v. Chrestensen (1942) Rowan v. U.S. Post Office Dept. (1970) Pittsburgh Press Co. v. Pittsburgh Comm'n on Human Relations (1973) Lehman v. Shaker Heights (1974) Goldfarb v. Virginia State Bar (1975) Bigelow v. Virginia (1975) Virginia State Pharmacy Bd. v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council (1976) Linmark Assoc., Inc. v. Township of Willingboro (1977) Carey v. Population Services International (1977) Bates v. State Bar of Arizona (1977) In re Primus (1978) Ohralik v. Ohio State Bar Assn. (1978) Friedman v. Rogers (1979) Consol. Edison Co. v. Public Serv. Comm'n (1980) Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. v. Public Service Commission (1980) Metromedia, Inc. v. San Diego (1981) Hoffman Estates v. The Flipside, Hoffman Estates, Inc. (1982) Zauderer v. Off. of Disciplinary Counsel of Supreme Court of Ohio (1985) Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. Public Utilities Comm'n of California (1986) Posadas de Puerto Rico Assoc. v. Tourism Co. of Puerto Rico (1986) San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. v. U.S. Olympic Committee (1987) City of Cincinnati v. Discovery Network, Inc. (1993) Lebron v. National Railroad Passenger Corp. (1995) Florida Bar v. Went For It, Inc. (1995) 44 Liquormart, Inc. v. Rhode Island (1996) Lorillard Tobacco Co. v. Reilly (2001) Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Ass'n (2005) Sorrell v. IMS Health Inc. (2011) Expressions Hair Design v. Schneiderman (2017) Matal v. Tam (2017) Iancu v. Brunetti (2019) Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants (2020) Vidal v. Elster (2024) Campaign finance and political speech Buckley v. Valeo (1976) First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti (1978) Citizens Against Rent Control v. City of Berkeley (1981) FEC v. National Conservative PAC (1985) FEC v. Massachusetts Citizens for Life (1986) Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce (1990) Colorado Republican Federal Campaign Committee v. FEC (1996) Nixon v. Shrink Missouri Government PAC (2000) Republican Party of Minnesota v. White (2002) McConnell v. FEC (2003) Randall v. Sorrell (2006) FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc. (2007) Davis v. FEC (2008) Citizens United v. FEC (2010) Nevada Commission on Ethics v. Carrigan (2011) Arizona Free Enterprise Club's Freedom Club PAC v. Bennett (2011) American Tradition Partnership, Inc. v. Bullock (2012) McCutcheon v. FEC (2014) Williams-Yulee v. Florida Bar (2015) Thompson v. Hebdon (2019) FEC v. Ted Cruz for Senate (2022) National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC (2025) Anonymous speech NAACP v. Alabama (1958) Bates v. City of Little Rock (1960) Talley v. California (1960) Buckley v. Valeo (1976) Brown v. Socialist Workers '74 Campaign Committee (1982) McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Comm'n (1995) Doe v. Reed (2010) Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta (2021) State action Marsh v. Alabama (1946) Lloyd Corp. v. Tanner (1972) Manhattan Community Access Corp. v. Halleck (2019) Lindke v. Freed (2024) Murthy v. Missouri (2024) Official retaliation Hartman v. Moore (2006) Wood v. Moss (2014) Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach (2018) Nieves v. Bartlett (2019) Egbert v. Boule (2022) Gonzalez v. Trevino (2024) National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo (2024) Boycotts NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co. (1982) Prisons Jones v. North Carolina Prisoners' Labor Union (1977) Turner v. Safley (1987) Shaw v. Murphy (2001) Beard v. Banks (2006)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Substantial disruption](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substantial_disruption) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substantial_disruption?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.