KEARNEY, Mo. | Oct. 29, 2026 — The Liberty Justice Center (LJC) has secured a free speech victory for a Missouri parent blocked from her school district’s official Facebook page after expressing criticism about the recent hiring of a new school principal. Following LJC’s demand letter, Kearney School District is taking steps to address LJC’s requested corrective measures to protect parents and other community members from viewpoint-based censorship.
Through its PARENTS Initiative — the Liberty Justice Center’s first line of protection for parental rights — LJC represents Annie Palmer, the mother of a student currently enrolled in Kearney School District and an educator who previously worked in the district for 10 years.
On April 16, 2026, Palmer used a “thumbs down” reaction and commented in response to a district Facebook post announcing the hiring of a new school principal. The district deleted her comments and blocked her access to its page without notice, explanation, or reference to any policy governing restrictions on public access.
Public records obtained by Palmer indicate that the restriction was not imposed based on any policy but was instead imposed because the newly hired principal was personally “upset” about her thumbs-down reaction.
On October 7, 2026, the Liberty Justice Center sent a demand letter to Superintendent Dr. Emily Miller explaining that, under the First Amendment, government officials cannot restrict access to official social media accounts simply because they disagree with someone’s viewpoint. A thumbs-down reaction expresses an opinion, and a school employee’s personal offense at that opinion does not justify censoring a parent on a government-operated social media page.
The letter also challenged the absence of a written district policy protecting the public’s First Amendment rights on its social media accounts and warned that failure to address the violations could result in a federal civil rights lawsuit.
In response to LJC’s demands, the district has agreed to:
- Provide written assurance that neither Palmer nor any other member of the public will be restricted from accessing district social media accounts based on their viewpoint or protected expression.
- Begin the process of adopting a written policy that acknowledges the public’s First Amendment rights.
- Begin the process of training the staff responsible for managing those accounts.
“There is no ‘hurt feelings’ exception to the First Amendment,” said Timothy R. Snowball, Senior Counsel for the Liberty Justice Center’s PARENTS Initiative. “Annie Palmer should never have been censored because a school employee disliked her opinion. The district’s compliance is a victory not just for Annie, but for every parent and community member whose right to speak must be respected. It is also a reminder that the Liberty Justice Center is prepared to combat unconstitutional government actions on behalf of parents wherever they may arise.”
This victory is part of the Liberty Justice Center’s broader work to defend parental rights through its PARENTS Initiative. This year, LJC sent letters to the attorneys general of five states to warn against potential legal consequences if they fail to address violations of federal law by school districts whose policies conceal students’ gender transitions from their parents. In ongoing litigation in Portland, Oregon, after securing major victories in free speech and parental rights for a Portland mother who was trespassed from her son’s public school after speaking out against gender-related school policies, LJC is continuing to fight to protect the fundamental rights of all parents to direct their children’s upbringing and education.
More information on the Liberty Justice Center’s PARENTS Initiative is available here.
More information on LJC’s Kearney School District demand letter is available here.