A North Carolina high school suspended a student after he used the term “illegal alien” during a class discussion, according to The Carolina Journal.
Central Davidson High School in Lexington suspended the 16-year-old student for three days after he asked a question that included the term “illegal alien” during a vocabulary assignment for his English class, according to The Carolina Journal. The teen’s mother, Leah McGhee, told the outlet that the teen’s teacher had assigned vocabulary words during class April 9, including the word “alien.” (RELATED: Kentucky High School Evacuated Following ‘Fart Spray’)
In attempt to understand the assignment, the boy proceeded to ask the teacher, “Like space aliens or illegal aliens without green cards?” McGhee said. Another student took offense to the question and allegedly threatened to fight the boy, according to an email describing the incident obtained by The Carolina Journal. The conflict then triggered the teacher to call the assistant principal, which eventually resulted in the school staff deeming the teen’s words offensive and disrespectful to Hispanic classmates, the outlet reported.
“I didn’t make a statement directed towards anyone; I asked a question,” McGhee’s son stated in response to the reported punishment. “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.”
NEW: North Carolina high school student Christian McGhee was suspended from school for saying “illegal alien” in the classroom.
Calling an illegal alien and illegal alien is not offensive, it’s just a fact.
McGhee was suspended for three days after doing an assignment in… pic.twitter.com/TUPX0sRmtg
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 16, 2024
During an interview Tuesday with journalist Lane Kendall, McGhee stated that she believed the assistant principal was the one who “insinuated racism,” after the boy who reportedly took offense stated he was “joking.” Within her email to the school, McGhee slammed officials for the damage the punishment could cause to her son’s school record as he is reportedly seeking an athletic scholarship for college, The Carolina Journal reported.
“Because of his question, our son was disciplined and given THREE days OUT of school suspension for ‘racism,'” McGhee wrote. “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.”
Since the email, McGhee said that the assistant principal has refused to remove the infraction from the teen’s record. However, the family is reportedly working with an attorney to oversee the situation in hopes that it doesn’t harm his future, according to the outlet.
Central Davidson High School declined to comment and confirm the suspension due to privacy reasons.