PONTIAC, Mich. – A group staged a rally Monday in support of a former teacher in Pontiac who claims she was fired over a Trayvon Martin fundraising idea.
Brooke Harris used to teach literature at the Pontiac Academy for Excellence. She said she and some of her middle school students wanted to wear hoodies to raise money in support of Martin's family.
The Florida teen was fatally shot Feb. 26 by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch leader. He is charged with second-degree murder but has said it was self-defense.
Harris said the school said no to the fundraising idea and she was subsequently suspended for two days after she appealed to the superintendent.
"There was nothing wrong with what me and these kids wanted to do and I really am about to cry right now because we're all out here right now," Harris said.
--Brooke Harris
She said she was then fired after going onto school property during her suspension.
"If learning was really the issue behind all of this, why did you take me out of the classroom?" Harris said.
In an earlier interview with Local 4, Academy Superintendent, Dr. Jaqcueline Cassell said Harris' firing was over work rules and not over her support for Martin.
The demonstration outside the school building lasted about an hour. About 20 students were there.
One parent wasn't happy her son joined in.
"A lot of these kids don't even know why they're out there. They don't even have a justification," said Bridgette Carr. "For them to be out here all day, missing school, I don't think it's really appropriate for her being a teacher to want them to miss."
Harris said she's hired a lawyer.