OPINION | Views expressed in this article reflect the author's opinion.

Young students around America were forced to wear masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A third grader named Lydia Booth in Mississippi was told that she was not allowed to wear a mask in school that read, “Jesus Loves Me.”

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However, other children were wearing masks with phrases written on them. Lydia’s mother, Jennifer, explained, “I was looking around, and all these kids had words all over their masks.”

Lydia’s mask was not causing any disruptions and other students wore masks with words without any objections.

In a lawsuit filed on the family’s behalf by Alliance Defending Freedom (AFD), it argued that Lydia’s First Amendments rights were being violated.

The school claims it has a right to ban students from wearing “political” or “religious” messages. The judge fortunately disagreed with the school.

Third grader Lydia Booth came out victorious and won the lawsuit.

ADF Legal Counsel Michael Ross said, “The First Amendment prohibits schools from singling out students for their speech, especially religious speech.”

”It’s very simple: What the school was doing is a flat violation of the First Amendment.”

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Lydia said, “I chose the mask because it had my favorite words on it, ‘Jesus Loves Me,’ and it made me feel safe when I went to school.”

Lydia’s family was happy about their efforts to change the mask policy, which now allows “political” or “religious” messages.

Jennifer said, “It’s about the little things,” “Day to day, you don’t notice a change, but five years from now, you’re going to look back to this day and see how drastically everything has changed…If we have a belief, we have a right to share it.”

The school no longer mandates face masks for students.