Muslim family accuses school of discrimination and harassment

A family spoke out at Tuesday night’s Crane school board meeting after they claimed their child was discriminated against and harassed at Crane Middle School.

“If the tables were turned, what action would have been taken against my daughter if she would have hit the teacher if she would have scratched the teacher if she would have been talking to employees at her school this way? She would’ve been disciplined long ago,” said the student’s mother.

Each person is given three minutes to speak at school board meetings during their call to the public. Others who were there to speak, gave up their time to this family, in a show of support, to allow the family to tell their story.

The student emotionally explained to the school board that the issue started when she began wearing her hijab daily and her mother wanted a meeting with the principal to discuss religious exemption.

Then a series of events occurred according to the family’s testimony to the school board, including hits to the student’s attendance record and changes to her schedule. The family told the school board it was all done by the front office staff.

The student’s aunt detailed the journey to get answers from school leaders.

“We spent hours at the district office building that day. The superintendent Mrs.Doering. She came out and she offered us only 20 minutes, stood up, ushered us out of the room without any assurance of how [the student] would be safe going to school the following day,” said the student’s aunt.

The family explained the solution they were given by school leaders after they said they spend hours waiting.

“The solution that was brought to us was that [the student] would enter through the side back door, which we mentioned before that’s discrimination. That is no solution,” said the student’s aunt.

Laurie Doering, the Crane schools superintendent, claimed an investigation was conducted into the allegations.

“Actually we can’t comment on that because of FERPA laws, the family education rights and privacy act. So I can’t give any specifics, but the family does have the documentation of a full investigation,” said Doering.

Others spoke out at the meeting and claimed the allegations were not true and that the front office staffs’ character does not add up to the allegations.