The Clayton teen says she was denied her diploma when she spoke about ICE and Palestine in her welcome speech.
Lynn Hijaz, a Muslim student of Palestinian descent at Clayton High School in Missouri, said her principal did not give her a diploma because she gave a controversial graduation speech, which her principal also boycotted.
During Clayton High School’s graduation ceremony on Thursday, May 28, Lynn Hijaz gave the welcome address, and when she reached the closing remarks of her speech, Hijaz began by talking about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Palestine.“Before I leave the stage, I have one last thing to say. Every person here has a voice; and we have the honor of using it when millions around the world struggle and struggle to be heard.
Whether it is the suffering of millions in Palestine, Sudan, Congo, Afghanistan and many other countries around the world, or the families being torn apart by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This is not just a problem there; It’s happening over there, it’s happening over here as I speak.
“My point is that we have not been given a voice to remain silent,” she said.The camera captured the event being broadcast live, and a woman, the school principal, appeared stopping Hijaz.
After that video spread, Hijaz admitted that the end of her speech was spontaneous and had not been approved in advance.Hijaz said: “I was very afraid to say something and I wasn’t really planning to do it, but I had great support from my friends and family around me, and they encouraged me to say something.” “I couldn’t say everything I wanted to say, but I said enough.”According to a WRAL report, Johnston County Public Schools said students were required to submit feedback well before graduation, and that the student deviated from what was previously approved by administrators. “School administrators intervened in order to maintain the integrity and focus of the program in real time. This action was not intended to limit student voice, but to ensure the school-sponsored event remained consistent with its intended purpose,” the district said.Johnston County Public Schools did not specifically say that Hijaz’s testimony had been withheld as a result of the letter.