Articles

The Salt Lake Tribune : Utah must drop ban on boys in high school drill team

March 15, 2023 | By CALEB TROTTER

The state championships for Utah high school drill team concluded in early February. If you watched the competitions, you probably noticed there were no boys participating. That’s by design, but it’s also unconstitutional. Jayden Herman-Lopez graduated in 2021 from Granger High School in West Valley City. One of Jayden’s cherished ...

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High school harpists are not criminals

January 19, 2023 | By CALEB TROTTER

Colorado high school sophomore Taryn Petruncola has played the harp since she was six years old. Aside from the joy that playing the harp brings Taryn, she also enjoys helping others. Through the years, she’s played for nursing homes and even during a family member’s funeral. As part of a business class that Taryn recently … ...

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What is Title IX?

June 29, 2022 | By CALEB TROTTER

Title IX refers to a specific provision of the federal Education Amendments Act of 1972. The provision, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, states simply: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any … ...

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Foundation for Economic Education : How a California tattoo artist beat public health officials who tried to deny her a permit

April 22, 2022 | By CALEB TROTTER

California tattoo artist Delia Fields is finally free to do what she loves. That’s the good news. However, her story highlights the uneven—some would say arbitrary—constitutional protections enjoyed by some entrepreneurs but not others. The last few years haven’t been easy for Delia. She lost everything she owned in the Camp Fire of ...

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National Review : The University of Minnesota’s unlawful discrimination

December 10, 2021 | By CALEB TROTTER

In the 1980s there were over 100 men’s collegiate gymnastics teams at the NCAA Division I level. As of the start of the 2021–22 school year, only 13 remain. While any individual school’s decision to eliminate its program can likely be credited to a number of factors, one that is cited consistently is the need … ...

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Redding, California, must allow tattoo studios to open downtown

September 23, 2021 | By CALEB TROTTER

Delia Fields lost everything in the Camp Fire in 2018. After fleeing the fire in her old pickup truck with nothing but her two dogs and the clothes on her back, she sought temporary shelter in a Walmart parking lot in Chico, California. From there, she located some friends she could stay with until she … ...

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Free speech is a valuable protector of economic liberty

July 14, 2021 | By CALEB TROTTER

When Oklahoma enacted a new law in 2016 limiting which artists could market their art as American Indian-made, the effect was to make it much harder for some artists to earn a living selling their art in the state. When California enacted the now-infamous AB 5 law in 2019 redefining which professionals could work as … ...

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Court takes steps to allow Native American artist to truthfully advertise her work

April 23, 2021 | By CALEB TROTTER

Peggy Fontenot is an artist and member of the Virginia-recognized Patawomeck Indian Tribe. For three decades she has honored her heritage by selling handmade beadwork, silver jewelry, and black-and-white photographs across the United States. She has won numerous awards and has been featured in many prominent galleries and museums, including the Smi ...

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The Hill : The PRO Act’s ‘ABC test’ fails American workers

February 16, 2021 | By CALEB TROTTER

The Protecting the Right to Organize Act threatens the freedom of millions of independent contractors — at a moment when Americans most need freedom and flexibility in their employment. The PRO Act, after failing to pass in the last Congress, was recently reintroduced. With Democrats controlling the House of Representatives and Senate, and with t ...