Family: Female student expelled for kneeing boy in the groin while in girls' bathroom
(KUTV) — A female student has reportedly been expelled from her high school after she kneed a boy in the groin while he was part of a group blocking her from leaving the girls' bathroom.
Seven boys entered the girls' restroom at North Pole High School in Alaska to protest a selfie taken in a boys' bathroom by a student transitioning from female to male. The male students, in protest to the transgender student's selfie, intended to do the same in the girls' bathroom that was occupied by the student. The transgender student and the student expelled were not connected in any way.
The female student was blocked from leaving and felt threatened. Alaska state Rep. Tammie Wilson, a Republican from North Pole, criticized the discipline against the girl and said it sent the wrong message and wanted to let them know she supported them.
"If you ever feel threatened for your safety, whatever force you think you have to give, I will stand behind you. And so will your community. Not for those boys who were where they didn’t belong," she told the Washington Post.
“Was she supposed to not protect herself?” she said in an interview with the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. “She was where she belonged. They were not.”
KTUU in Alaska reported the female student was suspended, not expelled and missed her prom. At least some of the boys were also disciplined but were allowed at prom. The student's sister, in a tweet that had 20,000 retweets and 70,000 likes, corrected the information about the suspension.
**expelled** my sister was expelled for kneeing a guy in the dick after he was blocking her in the WOMENS bathroom.
KUTV is not including the tweet because the identity of all the students has not been made public.
The school district, through district superintendent Karen Gaborik, defended the way it handled the situation and said violence is not acceptable to resolve conflict. She would not confirm the student had been expelled, citing the privacy concerns. She said:
We don’t advocate violence as a means for students to attain safety. If a student does use force, we have to evaluate that incident.
She told The Post the school has had previous transgender students using bathrooms but she didn't recall any incidents like the knee to the groin. The extent of the boy's injuries aren't clear and he was referred for medical treatment, but it wasn't known if he sought treatment.
“It wasn’t like a 911 call. It was a health aide saying, ‘Hey, you should really go see a doctor,’” Gaborik said.
She told the New Miner that students are generally accepting of transgender students but adults are sometimes uncomfortable. Private restrooms are available to students by request.
