Two American girls who were punished by their school for posting what it felt were sexually suggestive pictures on MySpace have sued.

Backed by the American Civil Liberties Union, in a federal lawsuit filed last week on behalf of the girls, argues that Churubusco High School violated the girls' free speech rights when it banned them from extracurricular activities for a joke that didn't involve the school. The suit says that the school district humiliated the girls by requiring them to apologize to an all-male coaches' board and undergo counselling.

The case has highlighted the issue of how much control schools should have over children when they are at home. The pair were banned from sports and made to apologize to the all-male coaches' board and undergo counseling after the photographs were circulated at school.

The snaps were taken during a sleepover with friends before school started this summer and posted them on their MySpace pages. The pictures were set for friends only and showed the girls in lingerie and pretended to lick a lollipop.