Chris Broderick

The lengthy hearing has gone beyond Pryor’s actions to probe a deeper undercurrent whether DPS has done enough to provide adequate resources and opportunities to Black students in response to longstanding equity concerns by community leaders, parents and educators.

“There was a progression (of complaints) to get to this level,” said Superintendent Alex Marrero, who is one of the defendants in Pryor’s lawsuit against the district. “This should not have caught him by surprise.”

The court case turns on what constitutes First Amendment speech protection versus what degree of threats, harassment and bullying justify the kind of restrictions that have been imposed by Denver Public Schools on Brandon Pryor.

Denver Public Schools has informed Brandon Pryor that the ban the district imposed on him in October has been modified allowing him to speak at school board meetings and attend certain public activities at schools.

Pryor was on the witness stand all day before U.S. District Court Judge John Kane as part of his lawsuit against the district, which banned him in October from board meetings and schools where his children do not attend because of what the district described as his “repeated abusive, bulling, threatening and intimidating conduct” directed at DPS administrators, including Superintendent Alex Marrero.

Students and community supporters Wednesday widened their fight to retain rights to “Know Justice, Know Peace” from their federal court lawsuit against Denver Public Schools to winning in the court of public opinion.

Denver Public Schools has threatened to sue the former principal of a Northeast Denver school along with several students to stop them from promoting the acclaimed “Know Justice, Know Peace” branded racial justice campaign that the students themselves created.