According to Melissa Fuller, her Hephzibah High School student daughter found the message offensive and shared it with her. Fuller posted about the incident on her personal Facebook page, which led to an online discussion about the message among school community members, CBS News reported.
— Jim Carr (@JimmCarr) October 4, 2019
"A lot of [the discussion] is that it's not morally correct. It's unethical," Fuller told local CBS affiliate WRDW. "It's just something you don't want to discuss today in today's world and especially inside of a classroom."
Fuller also told the outlet that when her daughter once wore a belt to school with a Confederate flag buckle, she was asked to remove the belt and was punished with in-school suspension.
"If she can't wear that belt buckle, then why is it appropriate to make an assignment out of it?" Fuller asked.
"Why was that used?” she added. "With it being such a rough area, why would you put that out there to a class discussion that could have turned very ugly?"
Fuller also said that her intention was not to get the unidentified teacher in trouble. Rather, she was trying to hear other parents’ opinions. However, her post quickly went viral, and the Richmond County School System placed the teacher on paid leave.
"The Richmond County School System is committed to creating a diverse, equitable learning environment for all students," the district said in a statement obtained by WRDW. "The language used in the example was unacceptable and has no place in our classrooms."
