Political T-Shirt Worn At Port Richmond High School Stirs Up Controversy
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - "I support Mitt Romney."
Sam Pawlucy may not be old enough to vote but unlike many undecided, this 16-year-old high school sophomore knows exactly who'd she vote for.
"I'm in favor of Mitt Romney because he's against abortion which is one thing I'm against," said Sam.
Sam wore a Romney-Ryan campaign shirt to class on Friday at Charles Carroll High School. That's when she said her honors geometry teacher singled her out.
"First she told me to get out of class, then I say, 'no,' and she goes in the hallway and she says, 'This girl is wearing a Romney-Ryan shirt," said Sam.
She says the teacher called in an assistant who pretended to draw on the shirt with a marker then demanded she take it off, saying this is a Democratic school. The teacher, who is African American, allegedly implied Sam was uninformed, likening it to the KKK.
"The teacher said, 'Are your parents Republican?' and I said, 'I don't know,' and she said, 'That's like her wearing a KKK shirt because she knows nothing about it,'" said Sam.
Her mom, Christine, said she was upset when she heard what happened from her daughter.
"I was livid… that a person in her position would take advantage of my daughter like that and embarrass her in front of all her peers and make her feel so bad," said Christine.
School officials say the teacher has been temporarily reassigned while the school investigates the incident. But Sam says since this has happened, students have started bullying her over Facebook which has made her nervous about returning to class.
"It taught me that I should stick up for what I believe in. I think it's my right to do what I think is right," said Sam.
