Speech Police Strike Again As High School Student Is Suspended for Using the Phrase 'Illegal Alien'

Kirsten Martin via AP

It is no secret that public education is little more than indoctrination at this point. The goal is to brainwash as many young skulls full of mush as possible, and that includes the approved words in the leftist vocabulary. Part of the "fundamental transformation of America" includes rewriting the dictionary and redefining words and phrases. It is something that Republicans and conservatives have been slow to call out and put a halt to. But just when you think that the left has reached the height of ridiculousness in their surveillance of American speech, wait a minute.  

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Christian McGhee is 16 years old and a student at Central Davidson High School in Lexington, North Carolina. He was recently suspended for three days. Not for fighting or misgendering a transgender student but for using the term "illegal alien." Christian was in English class, where the students were given a vocabulary word assignment that included the word "alien." To clarify the assignment, Christian's crime was to ask his teacher the question, “Like space aliens or illegal aliens without green cards?” As you might expect, chaos ensued.

A fellow student was offended by Christian's question and threatened to fight him. The threat of physical abuse was apparently less of a threat than saying "illegal alien," but did prompt Christian's teacher to alert the assistant principal. According to Christian's mother, Leah, who appeared on the "Pete Kaliner Podcast" to talk about the incident, the assistant principal put both boys out in the hallway, where Christian again stated that he did not mean the question as an insult, to which the other boy stated he was joking when he threatened Christian. Problem solved, right? Not exactly. Christian's use of the term was deemed "offensive and disrespectful to classmates who are Hispanic," and he was written up for what was described by Leah McGhee as a "racially insensitive comment." Christian McGhee said of his suspension,

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“I didn’t make a statement directed towards anyone; I asked a question. 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.”

While school administrators are busy being offended, the age-old problem of liberals not seeing the long-term effects of their goofy policies comes into play here. Christian is a track and cross-country athlete and is also involved in other school clubs and activities. An infraction of this kind could jeopardize any future athletic scholarships and possibly any future job opportunities. Christian's parents met with the assistant principal in an attempt to get the infraction removed from Christian's record. Leah stated that the assistant principal "would not accept any requests to remove the suspension," which also excluded Christian from competing in any track and field events during his three-day suspension. 

Christian McGhee is right. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary lists two definitions for "alien." Number 1: "a person who is not of a particular group or place," and number 2: "a foreign-born resident who has not been naturalized and is still a subject or citizen of a foreign country." Based on that, Leah McGhee stated that although the teacher and principal had been "very helpful" throughout the ordeal, she felt that the teacher could have used the incident as a "teaching moment," and rightly so. If the assignment was one involving vocabulary words, wouldn't this have been an opportunity for students to learn the exact meanings of a word?

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Thus far, the assistant principal has refused to remove the infraction from Christian's record. If, as Leah McGhee states, the head principal has been helpful, it is unknown why he or she could not override an assistant. The teacher has also acknowledged the fact that Christian was asking her a question, and was not addressing another student. Once again, the left has manufactured another incident of "offensive" comments, and now a young person's future may be at stake because they are obsessed with constantly being on the lookout for racial insensitivity. 

Leah McGhee stated that they have retained an attorney "out of concern for our family and for Christian" and to assist with the many media outlets that have picked up the story. But she also said bluntly that "the label of racism in today's world is so strong that I feel like we do not need to tackle this giant on our own. So we've done it out of excessive precaution." 

Good idea. No need for the speech police to show up on your lawn.


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