Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Muslim student says school won't take action on 'bully' who called her 'Isis'

The student has since graduated from Colonia High School

Andrew Buncombe
New York
Wednesday 28 October 2015 22:33 GMT
Comments
(Twitter)

A Muslim student who claimed she was harassed and bullied by a fellow student who posted her picture on social media with the word “Isis”, has hit out after officials declined to take action.

"After 4 months of 'investigation' the Woodbridge Township School District has come to the conclusion that when I was unknowingly taken a picture of at lunch, in school, by another student, and posted on Snapchat as 'ISIS,' I was not 'harassed, intimidated, or bullied," Saira Ali wrote in a Facebook post

"Apparently, according to the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act, it's entirely acceptable to take pictures of strangers and post them on social media with derogatory, inaccurate, slurs.”

Ms Ali graduated from the Colonia High School, New Jersey, and is currently studying at university. She did not immediately respond to inquiries.

However, the Woodbridge School Board said the incident was investigated and a perpetrator could not be found.

After the alleged incident last spring, Ms Ali posted the image on Facebook and encouraged her friends to share it, hoping the post would go viral.

After 4 months of "investigation" the Woodbridge Township School District… https://t.co/lC22TWjjjL

Ms Ali graduated from the Colonia High School, New Jersey, and is currently studying at university. She did not immediately respond to inquiries.

However, the Woodbridge School Board said the incident was investigated and a perpetrator could not be found.

After the alleged incident last spring, Ms Ali posted the image on Facebook and encouraged her friends to share it, hoping the post would go viral.

“You might think there's no hate crime where you live and before ya'know it some ignorant kid from your school makes a video of you at lunch, closes up on your face, calls you ISIS, & then sets it as his Snapchat story for everyone to see as if he's not insulting billions of people,” she wrote. "Please excuse me while I teach this kid a lesson."

After four months of investigation, which also involved the Woodbridge Police Department, officials sent the Ali family a letter stating the district found no evidence supporting a claim of harassment, intimidation or bullying, according to NewJersey.com.

“Although the school district is not permitted to discuss individual student matters, I can tell you the Woodbridge Board of Education takes subject matters like this very seriously,” said school board lawyer Jonathan Busch.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in