A North Carolina teen was suspended from school for using the term “illegal alien” in a classroom discussion, a transgression likened to “saying the n-word” by an administrator.
Christian McGhee, 16, was slapped with a three-day suspension in April after asking a teacher if her mention of “aliens” referred to “space aliens, or illegal aliens who need green cards,” Fox News reported.
Another student allegedly threatened to “kick [Christian’s] ass” for using the term, prompting an assistant principal at the Davidson County school to conclude that Christian made a “racially motivated comment which disrupts class.”
But when the administrator asked both boys about the incident, the other boy laughed it off and said, “It’s no big deal,” according to audio recordings revealed in court.
The McGhee family, being represented by the Liberty Justice Center, is suing the Davidson County School Board for allegedly violating Christian’s rights to free speech, education and due process.
The justice center filed a preliminary injunction on Tuesday to get the suspension expunged from Christian’s school record, providing alarming communication from administrators and school board members as evidence.
“He swears to me he wasn’t trying to be intentionally rude by asking that, so I talked to him about asking that question by saying ‘illegal alien’ versus ‘those people that need a green card.’ There’s respectful ways of asking that question and there are very disrespectful ways of asking that question,” the assistant principal, who has not been named by the outlet, could be heard saying in an audio recording.
“I agree that three days out of school is harsh, but it’s a line we drew in August and even though it hurt to give him that because I didn’t want to go there…but we decided that in August,” the administrator continued, before comparing the phrase to using a racial slur.
“And if I don’t give him that, then I’m being unfair to the 15 other kids that have served that up until now for saying the n-word or anything else under the sun that’s racially charged that creates a disruption in the classroom,” the administrator argued.
The assistant principal also admitted the other student involved in the supposed altercation “laughed” it off, but Christian still needed to be punished.
“[H]e thought it was funny or at least he laughed about it and said, ‘Oh, it’s no big deal,’ and in the hallway, when I was talking to both boys and Miss Hill, said ‘Those are just words. It’s not a big deal right?’ and I said, ‘No, sir, those words do make a big deal out of this the way they were said and their meaning,’” the administrator said.
The Liberty Justice Center also provided screenshots of messages between school board member Ashley Carroll and “community leaders,” Fox News reported.
In one message to a local Jewish community leader, Carroll compared the term “illegal alien” to antisemitism.
“Would you beat a kids ass who was making antisemitism comments,” she wrote.
“It’s a 3 day suspension. It’s not the end of the world,” she added.
Carroll also lambasted Christian’s mother, Leah McGhee, for trying to get the school board to drop the suspension by sharing a mugshot from an old arrest.
“Here’s the mom’s record if you want to know what kind of person you are dealing with. Didn’t you work hard to get drug dealers off the streets?” Carroll messaged a former law enforcement officer.
According to the family’s lawyers, Christian has been forced to unenroll from the school entirely due to bullying.
“Having been branded as a racist by his school, Christian’s return was met with ostracism, bullying, and threats. Concerned for his safety, his parents unenrolled him and he is now completing the semester through a homeschooling program,” the justice center said in a statement.
“Even though Christian asked a factual, non-threatening question — about a word the class was discussing — the school board branded him with false accusations of racism,” said senior counsel Buck Dougherty. “The school has not only violated his constitutional right to free speech, but also his right to due process and his right to access education, a guaranteed right under North Carolina law. We are proud to stand beside Christian and his family in challenging this egregious violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments.”
“School officials have effectively fabricated a racial incident out of thin air and branded our client as a racist without even giving him an opportunity to appeal. Fortunately, young people do not shed their First Amendment rights at school, and we look forward to vindicating Christian’s rights here.” said Dean McGee, Educational Freedom Attorney at the Liberty Justice Center.
McGee told Fox News, “We think the preliminary injunction will be granted which will clear our client’s record as the case proceeds.”
