North Carolina Student Suspended for Saying ‘Illegal Alien’ in Class

Illegal immigrants walk along the highway through Arriaga in Chiapas state, Southern Mexico, on Jan. 8, 2024. (Edgar H. Clemente/AP Photo)

A 16-year-old high school student in Lexington, North Carolina, was reportedly suspended for three days after he used the term “illegal alien” in English class.

The student’s mother, Leah McGhee, told local newspaper Carolina Journal that her son’s English teacher at Central Davidson High School had assigned the word “alien” during a vocabulary assignment on Tuesday.

Ms. McGhee said that her son was attempting to understand the assignment when he asked his teacher, “Like space aliens or illegal aliens without green cards?”

The student’s mother claims another boy in the class was offended by her son’s question to the teacher and allegedly threatened to fight him, according to an email sent by Ms. McGhee to local officials and shared with the local news outlet.

The incident prompted the teacher to get the assistant principal involved in the matter.

The administrative staff deemed the words “illegal aliens” to be disrespectful and offensive to the student’s Hispanic classmates.

Related Stories

Muslim Pupil Loses High Court Challenge Against School Prayer Ban

4/16/2024

Laguna Beach High School Investigating Fake Nude Photos of Students

4/2/2024

“I didn’t make a statement directed towards anyone; I asked a question,” the student reportedly said about his suspension. “I wasn’t speaking of Hispanics because everyone from other countries needs green cards, and the term ‘illegal alien’ is an actual term that I hear on the news and can find in the dictionary.”

The boy’s mother fears that the reprimand could harm her son’s student record, reducing his chance to secure an athletic scholarship for college. He is involved in several school activities, including track and cross country. 

“Because of his question, our son was disciplined and given THREE days OUT of school suspension for ‘racism,’” his mother reportedly wrote in the email. “He is devastated and concerned that the racism label on his school record will harm his future goal of receiving a track scholarship. We are concerned that he will fall behind in his classes due to being absent for three consecutive days.”

Ms. McGhee said the school has refused to remove the mark on the student’s record, the Carolina Journal reported. The family has also sought an attorney to help them resolve the issue before it causes further harm. They expect more information in the coming days.

Reactions

The story has gained widespread attention on social media. Libs of TikTok posted the story and a photo of the young man on X.

“This is a Christian,” the social media post read. “He’s a 16-year old student in @CDHSSPARTANS. He was suspended because it’s ‘offensive’ and ‘disrespectful.’ Now his record could be damaged.”

Elon Musk, the owner of X, shared the post, commenting, “This is absurd.”

“Hopefully, North Carolina officials can step in and ensure his record isn’t tarnished in any way because he’s trying to secure an athletic scholarship for college,” the group wrote in a reply to Mr. Musk’s comment. “He should not be persecuted for using the correct term just because the left is trying to change our entire language.”

Republican state Sen. Steve Jarvis told the Carolina Journal that he has reached out to Davidson County Schools Superintendent Gregg Slate to inform him about the situation. 

Mr. Jarvis, who has not taken a stance on the issue, said he has urged district officials to look for the best outcome for the parties involved. 

“I do not see that that would be an offensive statement, just in getting clarification,” Mr. Jarvis reportedly said. “But there again, I don’t know. I don’t know the situation of this particular incident.”

Mr. Jarvis did not immediately respond to The Epoch Times’ request for information.

A spokesperson for Mr. Slate’s office told The Epoch Times that the district could not provide information regarding student matters.

“We cannot discuss a specific student or their actions due to federal student privacy protections,” the spokesperson said in an email. “Please know that Davidson County Schools administrators take all discipline incidents seriously and investigate each one thoroughly. Any violation of the code of conduct is handled appropriately by administrators.”

According to the 2023-2024 Student Handbook under the section titled: Integrity and Civility, students are prohibited from using “profanity, obscenity, fighting or abusive words, or otherwise engage in speech that disrupts (written, symbolic, or verbal) and/or materially and substantially disrupts the classroom or other school activities.”

“In general, schools may place restrictions on students’ right to free speech when the speech is obscene, abusive, promoting illegal drug use, or is reasonably expected to cause a substantial disruption to the school day,” the handbook continues.

It is unclear whether the “offended” student received disciplinary action for allegedly threatening to fight the boy who used the term “illegal alien.”