Accessibility Statement Skip Navigation
  • Why PRWeb
  • How It Works
  • Who Uses It
  • Pricing
  • Login
  • GDPR
  • Create a Free Account
Return to PRWeb homepage
  • News
  • Resources
  • Contact
When typing in this field, a list of search results will appear and be automatically updated as you type.

Searching for your content...

No results found. Please change your search terms and try again.
  • News in Focus
      • Browse News Releases

      • All News Releases
      • Multimedia Gallery

      • All Multimedia
      • All Photos
      • All Videos
  • Business & Money
      • Auto & Transportation

      • Aerospace, Defense
      • Air Freight
      • Airlines & Aviation
      • Automotive
      • Maritime & Shipbuilding
      • Railroads and Intermodal Transportation
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Transportation, Trucking & Railroad
      • Travel
      • Trucking and Road Transportation
      • View All Auto & Transportation

      • Business Technology

      • Blockchain
      • Broadcast Tech
      • Computer & Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Components
      • Electronic Design Automation
      • Financial Technology
      • High Tech Security
      • Internet Technology
      • Nanotechnology
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Semiconductors
      • View All Business Technology

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Financial Services & Investing

      • Accounting News & Issues
      • Acquisitions, Mergers and Takeovers
      • Banking & Financial Services
      • Bankruptcy
      • Bond & Stock Ratings
      • Conference Call Announcements
      • Contracts
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Dividends
      • Earnings
      • Earnings Forecasts & Projections
      • Financing Agreements
      • Insurance
      • Investments Opinions
      • Joint Ventures
      • Mutual Funds
      • Private Placement
      • Real Estate
      • Restructuring & Recapitalization
      • Sales Reports
      • Shareholder Activism
      • Shareholder Meetings
      • Stock Offering
      • Stock Split
      • Venture Capital
      • View All Financial Services & Investing

      • General Business

      • Awards
      • Commercial Real Estate
      • Corporate Expansion
      • Earnings
      • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
      • Human Resource & Workforce Management
      • Licensing
      • New Products & Services
      • Obituaries
      • Outsourcing Businesses
      • Overseas Real Estate (non-US)
      • Personnel Announcements
      • Real Estate Transactions
      • Residential Real Estate
      • Small Business Services
      • Socially Responsible Investing
      • Surveys, Polls and Research
      • Trade Show News
      • View All General Business

  • Science & Tech
      • Consumer Technology

      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Blockchain
      • Cloud Computing/Internet of Things
      • Computer Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Consumer Electronics
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Gaming
      • Financial Technology
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Multimedia & Internet
      • Peripherals
      • Social Media
      • STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Math)
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Wireless Communications
      • View All Consumer Technology

      • Energy & Natural Resources

      • Alternative Energies
      • Chemical
      • Electrical Utilities
      • Gas
      • General Manufacturing
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Oil & Energy
      • Oil and Gas Discoveries
      • Utilities
      • Water Utilities
      • View All Energy & Natural Resources

      • Environ­ment

      • Conservation & Recycling
      • Environmental Issues
      • Environmental Policy
      • Environmental Products & Services
      • Green Technology
      • Natural Disasters
      • View All Environ­ment

      • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • Aerospace & Defense
      • Agriculture
      • Chemical
      • Construction & Building
      • General Manufacturing
      • HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning)
      • Machinery
      • Machine Tools, Metalworking and Metallurgy
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Paper, Forest Products & Containers
      • Precious Metals
      • Textiles
      • Tobacco
      • View All Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • Telecomm­unications

      • Carriers and Services
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Telecommunications Equipment
      • Telecommunications Industry
      • VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
      • Wireless Communications
      • View All Telecomm­unications

  • Lifestyle & Health
      • Consumer Products & Retail

      • Animals & Pets
      • Beers, Wines and Spirits
      • Beverages
      • Bridal Services
      • Cannabis
      • Cosmetics and Personal Care
      • Fashion
      • Food & Beverages
      • Furniture and Furnishings
      • Home Improvement
      • Household, Consumer & Cosmetics
      • Household Products
      • Jewelry
      • Non-Alcoholic Beverages
      • Office Products
      • Organic Food
      • Product Recalls
      • Restaurants
      • Retail
      • Supermarkets
      • Toys
      • View All Consumer Products & Retail

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Health

      • Biometrics
      • Biotechnology
      • Clinical Trials & Medical Discoveries
      • Dentistry
      • FDA Approval
      • Fitness/Wellness
      • Health Care & Hospitals
      • Health Insurance
      • Infection Control
      • International Medical Approval
      • Medical Equipment
      • Medical Pharmaceuticals
      • Mental Health
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Supplementary Medicine
      • View All Health

      • Sports

      • General Sports
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Sporting Events
      • Sports Equipment & Accessories
      • View All Sports

      • Travel

      • Amusement Parks and Tourist Attractions
      • Gambling & Casinos
      • Hotels and Resorts
      • Leisure & Tourism
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Passenger Aviation
      • Travel Industry
      • View All Travel

  • Policy & Public Interest
      • Policy & Public Interest

      • Advocacy Group Opinion
      • Animal Welfare
      • Congressional & Presidential Campaigns
      • Corporate Social Responsibility
      • Domestic Policy
      • Economic News, Trends, Analysis
      • Education
      • Environmental
      • European Government
      • FDA Approval
      • Federal and State Legislation
      • Federal Executive Branch & Agency
      • Foreign Policy & International Affairs
      • Homeland Security
      • Labor & Union
      • Legal Issues
      • Natural Disasters
      • Not For Profit
      • Patent Law
      • Public Safety
      • Trade Policy
      • U.S. State Policy
      • View All Policy & Public Interest

  • People & Culture
      • People & Culture

      • Aboriginal, First Nations & Native American
      • African American
      • Asian American
      • Children
      • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
      • Hispanic
      • Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual
      • Men's Interest
      • People with Disabilities
      • Religion
      • Senior Citizens
      • Veterans
      • Women
      • View All People & Culture

  • Hamburger menu
  • Cision PRWeb provides efficient communication tools to continuously engage with target audiences across multiple online channels
  • Create a Free Account
    • ALL CONTACT INFO
    • Contact Us


      11AM ET Sunday – 8PM ET Friday

  • Send a Release
  • Sign up
  • Log in
  • Resources
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • News in Focus
    • Browse All News
    • Multimedia Gallery
  • Business & Money
    • Auto & Transportation
    • Business Technology
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Financial Services & Investing
    • General Business
  • Science & Tech
    • Consumer Technology
    • Energy & Natural Resources
    • Environ­ment
    • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing
    • Telecomm­unications
  • Lifestyle & Health
    • Consumer Products & Retail
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Health
    • Sports
    • Travel
  • Policy & Public Interest
  • People & Culture
    • People & Culture
  • Send a Release
  • Sign up
  • Log in
  • Resources
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • Send a Release
  • Sign up
  • Log in
  • Resources
  • RSS
  • GDPR
  • Send a Release
  • Sign up
  • Log in
  • Resources
  • RSS
  • GDPR

Free Speech Icon Mary Beth Tinker Launches Crowdsourcing Campaign to Complete Nationwide Civics Education Bus Trip to American High Schools, Colleges
  • USA - English


News provided by

Tinker Tour

Feb 12, 2014, 03:00 ET

Share this article

Share toX

Share this article

Share toX

Washington, DC (PRWEB) February 12, 2014 -- Mary Beth Tinker, a plaintiff in the landmark 1969 students’ rights case Tinker v Des Moines, launched a crowdsource campaign (http://www.startsomegood.com/tinkertourwest) today to finish her national civics education tour, the “Tinker Tour,” with visits to at least 12 western states this spring.

This fall, Tinker and student rights attorney Mike Hiestand traveled 16,000 miles across the Eastern half of the country -- from Massachusetts to Michigan to Mississippi -- stopping at nearly 60 schools, colleges, libraries, courts, a student detention facility and several national conventions. Tinker shared her story with more than 20,000 students and teachers while also talking with them about free press, free speech and civics education. More information about the tour is available on the Tinker Tour Web site (http://www.tinkertourusa.org).

The Tinker Tour, which began on Constitution Day in Philadelphia, coincides with the 50th anniversary of a number of major civil rights anniversaries such as the Birmingham Childrens’ March and Mississippi’s Freedom Summer, events that Tinker says had a huge effect on her, and even on the Tinker ruling by the Supreme Court.

“I was a child growing up during a time much like today, when there was great inequality as well as war. I was only thirteen years old, but I wanted to speak up. When I saw the Birmingham Children on TV in 1963, that helped inspire me.”

Then, when three civil rights workers, Chaney, Schwarner and Goodman, were killed in Mississippi in the summer of 1964, Tinker’s parents went to Mississippi to volunteer with “Freedom Summer.” Tinker said that their bravery, as well as the stories her parents brought back about the civil rights workers, like Fannie Lou Hamer, also motivated her.

Tinker learned recently that Freedom Summer influenced her case even more than she realized. In the “Tinker” ruling, the Supreme Court cited a 1967 Appeals Court ruling that high school students in Mississippi should not have been suspended for wearing buttons to school to protest the killings there in 1964.

“This year is huge in civil rights history,” said Tinker. “And, it’s so important to pass along these stories that inspire young people, just like they were passed along to me.”

In 1965, Tinker, along with her brother, John, and Chris Eckhardt, the other plaintiff, wore black armbands to school to mourn the dead in Vietnam. When they were suspended, the case was argued by the ACLU at the Supreme Court, which ruled that neither students or teachers “leave their Constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate.”

Now, the ruling is cited by liberals and conservatives alike. In November, it was featured by the Liberty Institute at a Supreme Court Historical Society event.

As part of the fall tour, John and Mary Beth Tinker were also invited back to the Des Moines schools where they had been suspended - this time to address two school assemblies and accept a locker dedication. Chris Eckhardt died in 2012.

The Tinker ruling is still cited in nearly every student First Amendment case, and almost all American civics and history textbooks refer to it.

"It's like having the opportunity to take someone like Rosa Parks on tour," Hiestand said. “She is truly a civics education rock star. It’s exciting to see students and teachers meet — and get autographs and take “selfies” — with someone who has played such an important role in American history. It is civics education come to life!”

The Tinker Tour has been endorsed by more than 30 of the country’s leading civics education, civil rights and journalism education and journalism advocacy groups.

Tinker and Hiestand have already raised about half of the funds for the spring tour, which is scheduled to hit the road in March, and plan to raise the final $25,000 through their StartSomeGood.com campaign, which will run through March 7. Last spring, they raised $50,000 through Start Some Good, and last month were nominated for the 2014 StartSomeGood Impact Award.

Donations are being coordinated through the nonprofit Student Press Law Center, a nonpartisan organization with nearly four decades of experience supporting youth voices. The SPLC has agreed to make the tour one of its special projects, helping with tour logistics and collecting funds under their 501(c)(3) umbrella, which will make donations to the tour tax-deductible.

Ms. Tinker and Mr. Hiestand can be reached for interviews through the tour’s Web site at http://www.tinkertourusa.org or by e-mail at: tinkertour (at) gmail (dot) com

Mike Hiestand, Tinker Tour, http://www.tinkertourusa.org, +1 3603938916, [email protected]

Modal title

Student journalists gather around Mary Beth Tinker, Mike Hiestand and "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during a stop in Boston
Student journalists gather around Mary Beth Tinker, Mike Hiestand and "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during a stop in Boston
Wisconsin students gather to meet Mary Beth Tinker following a Tinker Tour stop this fall
Wisconsin students gather to meet Mary Beth Tinker following a Tinker Tour stop this fall
Mary Beth Tinker and her brother John are honored with a locker dedication ceremony in November at Harding Middle School in Des Moines, Iowa, site of Mary Beth's suspension in 1965.
Mary Beth Tinker and her brother John are honored with a locker dedication ceremony in November at Harding Middle School in Des Moines, Iowa, site of Mary Beth's suspension in 1965.
The Tinker Tour's Mike Hiestand and Mary Beth Tinker pose in front of "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during their fall tour
The Tinker Tour's Mike Hiestand and Mary Beth Tinker pose in front of "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during their fall tour
Mary Beth Tinker addresses students attending the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association's fall convention in Lansing
Mary Beth Tinker addresses students attending the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association's fall convention in Lansing
Student journalists gather around Mary Beth Tinker, Mike Hiestand and "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during a stop in Boston Wisconsin students gather to meet Mary Beth Tinker following a Tinker Tour stop this fall Mary Beth Tinker and her brother John are honored with a locker dedication ceremony in November at Harding Middle School in Des Moines, Iowa, site of Mary Beth's suspension in 1965. The Tinker Tour's Mike Hiestand and Mary Beth Tinker pose in front of "Gabby" the Tinker Tour bus during their fall tour Mary Beth Tinker addresses students attending the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association's fall convention in Lansing

Contact PRWeb

  • 11AM ET Sunday – 8PM ET Friday
  • Contact Us

About PRWeb

  • About PRWeb
  • Partners
  • Partnership Programs
  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Resources

Why PRWeb

  • Why PRWeb
  • How It Works
  • Who Uses It
  • Pricing

Accounts

  • Create a Free Account
  • Log in
  • Contact Us

Do not sell or share my personal information:

  • Submit via [email protected] 
  • Call Privacy toll-free: 877-297-8921

Contact Cision

Products

About

My Services
  • All News Releases
  • Online Member Center
  • ProfNet
Cision Distribution Helpline
888-776-0942
  • Legal
  • Site Map
  • RSS
  • Cookie Settings
Copyright © 2025 Cision US Inc.