The public reacted strongly to the students’ actions. Many were angered that they were protesting American involvement in Vietnam and felt it was disrespectful of the service members who had lost their lives in the war. Others felt the case gave the school and community a bad image. As a result, the Tinkers received hateful comments at school and in the community, through the mail, on the telephone, and their home was vandalized. They even received death threats for their actions. Their persistence in “righting” the wrong concerning their constitutional rights, put them at great personal risk.
Reactions
Hate, Threats, and Violence
"The captain of the football team attempted to rip it off."
- Christopher Eckhardt (Speaking Our Minds Conversations, 2002)
Tinkers discuss threats. (Iowa PBS, 2019)
"The haters heckled the kids & their families. Here’s a postcard sent to Leonard Tinker." (Tinker Tour, c. 1966)
"We had a brick thrown through our car windshield and a radio talk show host offered to lend a gun to anyone who would shoot my father, so that was pretty distressing."
- John Tinker (Personal Interview, March 3, 2025)
Sources of Support
While the Tinkers’ actions received lots of negative reactions, they also experienced support. The Iowa Civil Liberties Union (ICLU) stood in their corner throughout the case, publicly defending their actions and their legal case. Additionally, they received public support in a Des Moines Register letter to the editor from a U.S. Marine who fought in Vietnam, stating that he fought to protect the constitutional rights the students were exercising. Additionally, the Tinkers drew support from their family, who stood by them from the protest through the entire three-year legal battle.
(The Des Moines Register, December 18, 1965)
Dan Johnston, ICLU Attorney. (Des Moines Register, January 18, 1965)
"If citizens are instructed from kindergarten through high school that their political expression may be curtailed at the whim of school officers, and indeed may be forbidden entirely for the sake of preserving discipline, society will be the loser."
- Dan Johnston, Iowa Civil Liberties Union Lawyer ("Armband Plea to High Court." Des Moines Register, January 18, 1968, p. 18)
Corry, Harry M. “Letter to the Editor: A Marine Opposes Arm Band Ban.” (Des Moines Register, December 27, 1965)