Palestinian student sues Michigan school over teacher's reaction to her refusal to stand for Pledge
DETROIT: The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of a 14-year-old student who said a teacher humiliated her for refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance in protest of US support of Israel's war in Gaza.
Danielle Khalaf's teacher told her, 'Since you live in this country and enjoy its freedom, if you don't like it, you should go back to your country,' according to the lawsuit.
Danielle, whose family is of Palestinian descent, declined to recite the Pledge over three days in January.
'We can only marvel at the conviction and incredible courage it took for her to follow her conscience and her heart,' ACLU attorney Mark Fancher said.
The lawsuit says her teacher admonished her and told her she was being disrespectful.
As a result, Danielle 'suffered extensive emotional and social injuries,' including nightmares, stress and strained friendships, the lawsuit says.
The ACLU and the Arab American Civil Rights League said Danielle's First Amendment rights were violated, and the lawsuit seeks a financial award.
'It was traumatizing, it hurt and I know she could do that to other people,' Danielle said at a news conference in February, referring to the teacher's treatment.
At that time, the school district said it had taken 'appropriate action,' though it didn't elaborate.
'Discrimination in any form is not tolerated by Plymouth-Canton Community Schools and is taken very seriously,' the district said.
The school district declined Wednesday to comment further, citing the litigation.
Michigan has more than 300,000 residents of Middle Eastern or North African descent, second in the US behind California, according to the Census Bureau.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Press review: Trump wins the NATO Summit and Mamdani makes waves in New York
In this episode of The Dailies, Rawia Alami takes a look at important news stories, reports, analysis, and articles published in newspapers and media outlets across the world. Newspapers focused on the outcome of the NATO summit, viewing it as a total win for US President Donald Trump. The leaked intelligence report that undermines Trump's claims of the extent of damage dealt to Iranian nuclear site by American strikes received attention and an equal amount of uproar. Zohran Mamdani's win in the mayoral primary elections in New York was also widely discussed by American outlets.
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
US ambassador to Russia leaves Moscow
Lynne Tracy, the US ambassador to Russia, is leaving Moscow, her embassy said on Friday, noting she had served through one of the most strained periods in relations between Moscow and Washington. The departure of a career diplomat appointed under the administration of former president Joe Biden comes as Russia and the United States discuss a potential reset in their ties which sharply deteriorated after Moscow launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in 2022. President Donald Trump has said there are potentially big investment deals to be struck, but is growing increasingly frustrated that his efforts to broker a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine have so far not resulted in a meaningful ceasefire. 'I am proud to have represented my country in Moscow during such a challenging time. As I leave Russia, I know that my colleagues at the embassy will continue to work to improve our relations and maintain ties with the Russian people,' the embassy cited Tracy as saying in a statement. It said Tracy's time in post had been marked by her belief that meaningful dialogue was important even during difficult times, the embassy said. The embassy said earlier this month that Tracy, who arrived in Moscow in January 2023 and was greeted by protesters chanting anti-US slogans when she went to the Foreign Ministry to present her credentials, would leave her post soon. Her successor has not been publicly named. Her tenure is similar in duration to her predecessor, John Sullivan, who served as ambassador for two years and seven months from February 2020 to September 2022. Tracy was notably involved in efforts to win the release of US citizens jailed in Russia, including journalist Evan Gershkovich and former marine Paul Whelan, who were eventually freed in August 2024 as part of a big East-West prisoner swap.
Argaam
2 hours ago
- Argaam
Trump may extend deadline for reciprocal tariffs: White House
The official White House Spokesperson stated that President Donald Trump may extend the deadline for implementing the upcoming round of reciprocal tariffs, which had previously been set for July 9.
