Home Industries ACLU sues Smithfield School District for blocking social media pages from resident

ACLU sues Smithfield School District for blocking social media pages from resident

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PBN Staff

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06/09/2025

THE AMERICAN CIVIL Liberties Union of Rhode Island Inc. is suing the Smithfield Public Schools for preventing a town resident from accessing its social media pages.

PROVIDENCE – The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island Inc. is suing the Smithfield Public Schools for preventing a town resident from accessing its social media pages. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Smithfield resident Daniel Mayer, alleges that he was barred from both Superintendent Dawn Bartz’s and the school district’s X accounts after

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PROVIDENCE – The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island Inc. is suing the Smithfield Public Schools for preventing a town resident from accessing its social media pages. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Smithfield resident Daniel Mayer, alleges that he was barred from both Superintendent Dawn Bartz’s and the school district's X accounts after he advocated for Bartz’s resignation. Mayer had regularly viewed and interacted with the superintendent on both accounts to stay informed about the issues, the lawsuit said. Since the calls for her resignation, Bartz and the school district have changed the settings on their X accounts to require all people to seek approval to gain access to those accounts. Over four months ago, Mayer sought approvals on both accounts but remains blocked. In its lawsuit, the ACLU argues that the censorship violates Mayer’s First Amendment rights “to speak and to petition the government for redress of grievances.” “Just as public officials may not preclude persons from participating in the public-comment portion of a town hall meeting based on their viewpoints or arbitrarily deny members of the public access to the meeting, Superintendent Bartz cannot ban users from the @SmithfieldSuper X account page because she dislikes their opinions or require formal approval in order to allow them access,” the ACLU said in its lawsuit. The lawsuit also notes that both accounts are used to announce and describe school district policies and office operations; to share content produced for the town’s schools; and to communicate with constituents. The lawsuit argues that, as official social media accounts, access to them cannot be limited based on the identity or viewpoint of the individual seeking access. “Access to a city or town’s social media accounts for information and comment is crucial for citizens to engage in discourse with their representatives,” said ACLU cooperating attorney David Cass. “Improper restrictions of social media accounts by cities and towns hinder open discourse and access for meaningful participation with our government and diminishes our democracy.” The lawsuit asks the court to declare Smithfield Public Schools and the superintendent’s blocking of the plaintiff and others from the X pages to be unconstitutional, to issue an injunction prohibiting the officials from banning anybody from the pages “on the basis of viewpoint,” and to bar the defendants from allowing only approved followers access to the X accounts. The suit also seeks an award of nominal damages and attorneys’ fees.