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Nebraska student appeals censorship of editorial cartoon
Reposted by A New And More Reasonable Popehat
https://bsky.app/profile/kenwhite.bsky.social
Adam Steinbaugh
@adamsteinbaugh.bsky.social
Officials at an Omaha-area high school ordered the student newspaper to remove this editorial cartoon criticizing ICE, then demanded prior review of articles about their censorship. Via @splc.org, which is advocating for the students:
https://splc.org/2026/03/nebraska-student-appeals-censorship-of-editorial-cartoon/
Cartoon depicting a "history" factory, with the quote: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it" from George Santayana. A student thinks: "Why does this look familiar?" while thinking about the Palmer Raids and Japanese-American Incarcerations, and the cogs of "Bureaucracy" and "Loopholes" stand next to an "ICE" conveyor belt with "Unidentified Agents," "Detentions Without Charge," "Militarized PResence," and "Limited Transparency" on the assembly line. Beneath the conveyor belt, spilled water from a pipe, labeled: "the cracks are showing", and a graph showing "public trust" in the red.
ALT
8:49 AM · Mar 31, 2026
@adamsteinbaugh.bsky.social
Officials at an Omaha-area high school ordered the student newspaper to remove this editorial cartoon criticizing ICE, then demanded prior review of articles about their censorship. Via @splc.org, which is advocating for the students:
https://splc.org/2026/03/nebraska-student-appeals-censorship-of-editorial-cartoon/
Cartoon depicting a "history" factory, with the quote: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it" from George Santayana. A student thinks: "Why does this look familiar?" while thinking about the Palmer Raids and Japanese-American Incarcerations, and the cogs of "Bureaucracy" and "Loopholes" stand next to an "ICE" conveyor belt with "Unidentified Agents," "Detentions Without Charge," "Militarized PResence," and "Limited Transparency" on the assembly line. Beneath the conveyor belt, spilled water from a pipe, labeled: "the cracks are showing", and a graph showing "public trust" in the red.
ALT
8:49 AM · Mar 31, 2026
Officials at an Omaha-area high school ordered the student newspaper to remove this editorial cartoon criticizing ICE, then demanded prior review of articles about their censorship. Via @splc.org, which is advocating for the students: splc.org/2026/03/nebr...
— Adam Steinbaugh (@adamsteinbaugh.bsky.social) 2026-03-31T12:49:54.261Z
Nebraska student appeals censorship of editorial cartoon
News
March 31, 2026 Ben Schneider
A Nebraska student journalist, with the help of the Student Press Law Center, is pushing back against censorship at his high school, and he hopes it will secure press freedom for all students in his district.
Gretna East High School junior Nicholas Mitchell filed an appeal yesterday with the Gretna Public Schools Board of Education, asking them to reverse the recent censorship of an editorial cartoon and to establish a district policy that lets student editors determine the content of school-sponsored student media without prior review.
“I had to do something because I believe every voice matters, no matter who you are,” Mitchell said. “I want a student at Gretna East five years from now to have the freedom to speak their mind and share their ideas honestly, without censorship or prior review."
Gretna East High School administrators ordered editors of Gretna East Media to remove this cartoon by student Aiden McClaren.
In February, Gretna East administrators told editors for Gretna East Media to remove from their website an editorial cartoon by student Aidan McClaren that was critical of ICE. Administrators then insisted they must approve any article about the censorship, imposing prior review on the publication that had previously operated with editorial independence.
In justifying the censorship, administrators said the cartoon’s opinion on a politically charged topic could reflect on the district, and that it could potentially alienate students or cause a disruption.
{snip}
News
March 31, 2026 Ben Schneider
A Nebraska student journalist, with the help of the Student Press Law Center, is pushing back against censorship at his high school, and he hopes it will secure press freedom for all students in his district.
Gretna East High School junior Nicholas Mitchell filed an appeal yesterday with the Gretna Public Schools Board of Education, asking them to reverse the recent censorship of an editorial cartoon and to establish a district policy that lets student editors determine the content of school-sponsored student media without prior review.
“I had to do something because I believe every voice matters, no matter who you are,” Mitchell said. “I want a student at Gretna East five years from now to have the freedom to speak their mind and share their ideas honestly, without censorship or prior review."
Gretna East High School administrators ordered editors of Gretna East Media to remove this cartoon by student Aiden McClaren.
In February, Gretna East administrators told editors for Gretna East Media to remove from their website an editorial cartoon by student Aidan McClaren that was critical of ICE. Administrators then insisted they must approve any article about the censorship, imposing prior review on the publication that had previously operated with editorial independence.
In justifying the censorship, administrators said the cartoon’s opinion on a politically charged topic could reflect on the district, and that it could potentially alienate students or cause a disruption.
{snip}