A North Carolina high school student has been suspended for using the phrase “illegal alien” in class.
Christian McGhee, 16, was suspended for three days from Central Davidson High School after using the term during a classroom discussion about the meaning of the words.
Christian questioned the term ‘alien’ in one assignment, asking if it meant ‘space aliens or illegal aliens without green cards,’ the Carolina Diary.
His comment reportedly offended another student who physically threatened McGhee, leading to the involvement of school authorities.
“I didn’t make a statement directed at anyone; I asked a question,” Christian told Carolina Journal.
Christian McGhee, 16, was suspended for three days from Central Davidson High School after using the term during a classroom discussion about the meaning of the words.
Christian questioned the term “alien” in one assignment, asking if he meant “aliens or illegal aliens without green cards (pictured, center)
His comment allegedly offended another student, who physically threatened McGhee, leading to the involvement of school authorities at Central Davidson High School in Lexington, North Carolina (pictured).
“I wasn’t talking about Hispanics because everyone from other countries needs green cards, and the term ‘illegal alien’ is a real term that I hear on the news and can find in the dictionary,” he added.
His suspension could affect his chances of earning an athletic scholarship to college while he played on his school’s track and cross country teams.
His mother, Leah McGhee, said that despite her efforts, the assistant principal has been unwilling to remove the violation from Christian’s record.
“Because of your question, our son was disciplined and suspended THREE days OUT of school for ‘racism,'” Christian’s mother wrote in the email, Carolina Journal reported.
His mother, Leah McGhee (pictured), said that despite her efforts, the assistant principal has been unwilling to remove the violation from Christian’s record.
“I didn’t make a statement directed at anyone; I asked a question,” Christian told Carolina Journal.
‘Christian is devastated and worried that the racism label on his school record will hurt his future goal of receiving an athletic scholarship. ‘We are worried that he will fall behind in his classes due to his absence for three consecutive days.’
State Sen. Steve Jarvis, representing Davidson County, reached out to the school district’s superintendent and urged officials to seek the best outcome.
However, Jarvis refrained from taking a stance on the issue, explaining that he needed to understand all perspectives involved.
“I don’t see that as an offensive statement, just to get clarification,” he said. But again, I don’t know. I don’t know the situation of this particular incident.