Is 'Let's Go Brandon' Profanity?

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 06/12/2025) Whether the political slogan "Let's Go Brandon"– a known euphemism for "Fuck Joe Biden" – is profanity and therefore prohibited on clothing in schools is in the hands of a federal appellate panel.

Plaintiffs' attorney, Conor Fitzpatrick, of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, argued that Tri County Area Schools' 2022 prohibition of the political slogan infringed on the students' First Amendment rights because the school can ban explicit profanity, but not sanitized substitutes – such as a student saying "fudge" instead of "fuck."

" … Sanitized expressions are a staple of the English language," he told the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals panel on Thursday. "By prohibiting middle and high school students from wearing apparel with the 'Let's Go Brandon' political slogan because it means something else, defendants ignored centuries of history and tradition in the English language of replacing profanity with sanitized substitutes.

"The district court's view would turn everything from 'gosh darn' to a kid's bop album into censorable profanity – an approach which defies common sense and no court had ever accepted," Fitzpatrick noted.

Annabel Frances Shea, who represents Tri County Area Schools and two administrators, countered that there's no dispute that the Brandon phrase is a reference to a NASCAR crowd shouting, "Fuck Joe Biden."

Shea argued that the school district's prohibition was reasonable because it was based on the profane meaning of the Brandon phrase.

Two students, identified as D.A. and X.A., wore their sweatshirts to school in 2022 at separate times. D.A. alleged a middle school principal told him he could not wear the clothing because it was "equivalent to 'the f-word'" and profanity wasn't allowed in school, while X.A., a freshman, alleged he was told students cannot wear clothing with political speech.

The lower court ruled against the students in 2024, saying the sweatshirts conveyed a profane meaning.

Circuit Judge John B. Nalbandian questioned why school officials couldn't use their discretion, and Fitzpatrick countered that the U.S. Supreme Court's 7-2 Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District case held that the constitution protects students' right to wear political apparel to school.

"In some sense," he said, "the profanity trumps the political nature of the speech."

"It does," Fitzpatrick replied.

"Who decides what is profane or not?" Nalbandian continued.

"The courts do," Fitzpatrick said.

Shea argued that even if the court holds that Tinker applies, her clients are still entitled to qualified immunity because the right at issue isn't clearly established.

"This really is a case that's unique," she said. "It presents a unique set of facts. It has not been decided by any court, let alone the Supreme Court or the Sixth Circuit."

Circuit Judge John Bush asked Fitzpatrick why the school administrators don't have immunity, and Fitzpatrick replied that there is no question the Tinker case "established a First Amendment right to wear political clothes to school."

Bush questioned Shea about why Tinker doesn't apply, noting that the case was applied to similar cases challenging whether a confederate flag is offensive.

Shea said the cases are "different," prompting Bush to ask: "Isn’t the confederate flag deeply offensive? Isn't it just as offensive as 'Let's Go Brandon'?"

Circuit Judge Karen Nelson Moore questioned if the school district allowed students to wear clothing expressing a political viewpoint, and Shea agreed they could.

"The prohibition," Shea noted, "had nothing to do with political viewpoint. It had a profane meaning."