A 16-year-old student at Central Davidson High School in Lexington, North Carolina, has been suspended for three days after using the term 'illegal alien' during a vocabulary assignment in his English class last week.

The Carolina Journal reports that Christian McGhee's teacher had assigned vocabulary words, including the word 'alien,' to which Christian responded by asking, "Like space aliens or illegal aliens without green cards?"

According to an email sent to local officials by Christian's mother, Leah McGhee, a classmate took offense to the question and threatened to fight Christian, prompting the teacher to involve the assistant principal.

The school's administrative staff ultimately deemed Christian's words offensive and disrespectful to Hispanic classmates.

Christian maintains that his question was not directed at anyone in particular and that the term 'illegal alien' is a commonly used phrase in the news and can be found in the dictionary. Despite this, he was disciplined with a three-day out-of-school suspension for 'racism.'

According to the publication, the suspension has raised concerns for Christian and his family, as they fear it could harm his chances of securing an athletic scholarship for college. Christian is actively involved in school clubs, track, and cross country.

Leah McGhee has been working with an attorney to remedy the situation and remove the infraction from Christian's record. State Senator Steve Jarvis (R-Davidson) has contacted the school district's superintendent to make him aware of the incident but has not taken a stance on the matter due to limited information.

Davidson County Schools officials have stated that they cannot provide details on student matters. The student handbook outlines restrictions on free speech when it is deemed obscene, abusive, promotes illegal drug use, or is expected to cause substantial disruption to the school day.