Armed with signs and chants, several dozen students at NorKam Secondary staged a walkout this afternoon in support of Karis Wilson.
Its after the Grade 12 student was sent home yesterday for her outfit – a knee-length black dress over a white turtleneck sweater – which reportedly made a female teacher and a male student teacher feel uncomfortable.
“Its insane seeing this many people support me,” Wilson told NL News. “I’m nervous to go back to class, but I do know when I go back into class, I will have so much support behind me that I don’t have anything to worry about.”
Wilson hasn’t been to class since the incident, noting she’s missed out on part of her education as a result. She was given the opportunity to go home and change, but chose to not return to school on Tuesday. Karis says she has no ill-will towards her teacher, hoping instead her teacher can ‘learn from her mistake’ moving forward.
“I never though that in my high school experience that I would have to explain to my teachers that lace does not make my outfit sexual, and that she is picturing it sexually, and that is not on me, that is not my fault,” she added.
“I’m completely covered and I’ve never been talked to like that by an adult. Its disgusting. You don’t picture children that way.”
Wilson wants there to be more sensitivity training for teachers across School District 73. She is also calling for changes to the school’s dress code, something which SD73 Board Chair Rhonda Kershaw says could happen.
“I think that there should be a lot of changes made to our dress code and that if I don’t like your outfit, I shouldn’t be able to send you home and affect your education because they believe what I was wearing was sexual or it was making them uncomfortable because they were picturing me in that sense,” Wilson added.
In a statement, the Kamloops-Thompson School District says it is concerned about the allegations which are being treated seriously.
“We understand the parent is concerned about what happened to his daughter at school yesterday,” spokesperson Diana Skoglund said in an email. “The incident is currently under review. We will not comment on the incident specifically.”
– With files from Colton Davies
Quick bit of video from NorKam walkout over student sent home over her outfit – a black dress and a turtleneck. #Kamloops pic.twitter.com/vHiWUHuFKa
— Brett Mineer (@MineerBrett) February 24, 2021
