"Illegal aliens" and Davidson County Public Schools
How using correct terminology got a student suspended
During the first week of April, a student in Davidson County Public Schools was suspended for asking a question in which he used the term "illegal aliens."
The student, 16-year-old Christian McGhee, and his family are suing the Davidson Board of Education and the Liberty Law Center (LLC) is handling the case.
Here's what LLC says transpired:
On April 9, sophomore Christian McGhee raised his hand and asked his English teacher whether her reference to the word “aliens” referred to “space aliens, or illegal aliens who need green cards?” Although there was no substantial disruption to the class, the school decided to suspend Christian for three days out of school, with the administration equating his question to a vicious racial slur. Christian was also prohibited from competing in a season-defining track meet. No appeal was permitted.
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 complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina on May 7 and can be accessed here.
The parental advocacy group Parents Defending Education (PDE) claims the district is blocking access to records.
PDE filed a records request about the suspension asking for "emails from the teacher involved in the class, principal, superintendent, and board members regarding the situation."
Davidson County Schools only sent PDE four emails (eight pages) as a response; all of which were between the district and the McGhee family.
More To The Story
Illegal alien is use of correct terminology. Arguably, so is illegal immigrant or illegal migrant.
At this year's State of the Union, President Joe Biden himself used the term "illegal" when referring to the man who murdered nursing student Laken Riley.
Biden later apologized for using the term illegals and the White House had some walking back to do.
Did anyone find it odd that Biden had a "Say her Name Laken Riley" pin at the ready?
The laws in the United States and the codes governing immigration have a prolific use of the word "alien".
A search of the NC General Assembly website shows over 1,000 hits for "alien" among bills and general statutes. In fact, there is an entire chapter in statutes that covers "Aliens."
A recent bill filed by NC Senate Democrats on firearms includes in its definition of those who cannot possess a gun as, “One who is an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States.”
But it’s not ok for a student to use the same type of reference?
McGhee's teacher and school punishing him for using proper language because it might offend someone is a classic example of the accusation made by some that public schools are woke ideology indoctrination centers.
Using the correct technical and legal term "illegal alien" to refer to an individual who is in the U.S. without a legal basis has been labeled as racist for quite some time by a host of groups, politicians, and media outlets.
What this student said was technically correct but has been made politically incorrect over time. The demonization of a term or change in language is intentional.
A recent example out of Illinois where Democrats have a bill dropping the word "offender" when it comes to criminals under arrest or those convicted of crimes, but instead using the term "justice-impacted individual."
Media outlets have morphed the term multiple times using alternatives such as foreign worker, illegal immigrant, undocumented migrant, and lately, just "migrant." This change in the language was intentional, to portray those entering the country illegally in a softer light.
For example, the Associated Press stylebook dropped "illegal immigrant" in 2018. An AP spokesman said at the time that "illegal" should only be used to describe actions and not people.
But it was only under President Biden that the term was officially nixed from use by U.S. immigration and border patrol agencies.
In April 2021, Biden sent a guidance letter directing those agencies to drop the term illegal alien and replace it with "undocumented noncitizen."
Bonus Flashbacks on illegal immigration: