A concerned mother has expressed outrage after her daughter’s school confiscated a drawing of a pig because its jaunty tie looked like a penis.
Michigan’s Sierra Carter took to TikTok to explain that she received a call from her 11-year-old’s art teacher who had concerns about one of her creations.
Sierra’s daughter had drawn a colorful masterpiece entitled Piggie, which depicted the farm animal waving its arms next to a speech bubble that simply said “Hi.”
But the teacher at Hannover-Horton Elementary School thought it was “inappropriate” and said the pig’s bow tie showed male genitalia.
Sierra has since attended meetings with the teacher, a social worker and the principal, as well as the headmaster – but claims the matter has not yet been satisfactorily resolved and says the picture is still kept in her daughter’s file.
Michigan’s Sierra Carter took to TikTok to explain that she received a call from her 11-year-old’s art teacher who had concerns about one of her creations
Sierra’s daughter had created a colorful masterpiece entitled Piggie, which depicted the farm animal waving its arms alongside a speech bubble that simply said, “Hi.”
Social media users were quick to share their support for Sierra and her family, branding the situation “shameful”.
But the school’s superintendent, John Denney, called the situation “unfortunate” and explained it was a “one-sided narrative created on social media that paints our staff in a negative light”.
In the candid clip, which has more than 800,000 views so far, Sierra spoke to the camera as she explained what happened.
She said: “I got a call from my daughter’s teacher – she’s in fifth grade, she’s 11 years old. Her teacher told me that my daughter had drawn something inappropriate in art class and that a little boy had approached her and pointed out that he thought my daughter was drawing “boy parts” for her pig project.
“She went over and asked my daughter for all her papers… My daughter immediately told her teacher that she drew a bow tie.
“But the teacher took all her papers from her and then said she had to give my daughter’s project to the assistant principal.”
Sierra, who was then called to a meeting, continued: “I get there this morning and they take me to a conference room and I sit down with the teacher and the school’s social worker.
“They give me their art project that was just ‘so offensive’ and as soon as I look at it I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me?'”
Sierra said her daughter’s teacher should have closed the whole topic in the first place – and other social media users were quick to agree
“I literally slammed my hand on the table and said, ‘To be perfectly honest, I’m pissed. Why are we sitting here right now? And why was a big deal made of it. It’s a damn fly.”
“They told me that when they gave it to the headmaster to ask him what he thought of it all, the first thing he said was, ‘Text her.’
Sierra said she then asked for him to be brought in so she could discuss the drawing with him too.
After Sierra pointed out to him that it was just a fly, he said, “[The principal] says “a bow tie is a loop.”
“And I’m like, ‘I’m sorry my daughter isn’t a Monet, but to her, a bow tie is a bow and a tie is a he issue rather than a she issue. I don’t know why you make this my daughter’s problem.”
Sierra said the principal then agreed not to write down the incident, but claims he wants to keep the artwork on file in case future problems arise.
She continued, “My daughter was never inappropriate. She’s never talked about ‘girl parts’ or ‘boy parts’, never drawn anything at home or at school or anything.’
The doting mother, who has repeatedly stated that her daughter had done nothing wrong, ended the clip by saying she was left “super confused”.
She said her daughter’s teacher should have closed the whole topic from the start – and other social media users were quick to agree.
One wrote: “The social worker could have stopped this problem in seconds, shameful! The adults have their heads in the gutter.’
Sierra branded the school’s actions as “defeating” and “very disheartening,” before claiming the artwork is still kept in her daughter’s file
One entrepreneur has even taken his support a step further by turning the controversial drawing into a t-shirt design and selling it for $24.99
Another said: “As an admin, I’m so sorry you had to deal with this. When I saw the picture I thought: ‘You’re kidding’, keep standing up for your child!’
And a third added: “You must be kidding me! That’s ridiculous! It’s clearly a fly and the teachers/principals/social workers should be ashamed!!’
A business event took their support a step further by turning the controversial drawing into a t-shirt design and selling it for $24.99.
Sierra has since shared a number of other updates for her followers on the video platform.
She thanked people for their support before revealing that ADHD can sometimes cause her daughter to struggle at school and with socialization.
Sierra, who also met with the superintendent after the incident, said: “I just want the school to understand how hurtful their allegations are towards my daughter and I just want them to get it right.
“I just want them to apologize and I don’t want my daughter to feel like she’s always in trouble about something because she works so hard to do well at school.”
She branded the school’s actions as “defeating” and “very disheartening” before claiming the artwork is still kept in her daughter’s file.
In an official statement from Superintendent John Denney, he told FEMAIL: “Our staff are charged with maintaining schools that are safe and free from distraction or disruption. In assuming this responsibility, they endeavor to comply with all legal and political requirements. All related decisions have been made in accordance with and in support of these principles.
“It is unfortunate that a one-sided narrative has been created on social media that portrays our employees in a negative light. As with any situation, this story has two sides. In this case, a student has appropriately brought a concern to the attention of our staff.’
It continued: “In response, our staff handled the situation with compassion and discretion. Staff contacted the student’s parents to discuss the situation. No student was singled out or ostracized. Every effort has been made to protect the privacy and dignity of all students. Nothing was recorded in a student’s school record regarding this matter.
“Due to student confidentiality laws, we are unable to provide any further information on this situation.”