Florida teacher given five-day suspension for calling Muslim student a ‘Rag Head Taliban’

A French teacher at Cypress Bay High School in Weston, Florida, has been suspended for five days without pay, and will have to undergo a diversity training programme, for calling a Muslim student a “Rag Head Taliban’’ when the 14-year-old walked into class wearing a hoodie last month. The punishment didn’t please the student’s father. Youssef Wardani wanted the teacher, Maria Valdes, fired or suspended for a year without pay for what he calls racist comments.



On Tuesday, Wardani addressed the Broward School Board, who voted unanimously to discipline the teacher, who has been teaching in Broward Schools for 11 years. “My son is Deyab-Houssein Wardani, [and] he’s not a rag head Taliban,” Wardani told the school board members. Wardani said his son, who is of Lebanese and Moroccan descent, was bullied by his teacher, and accused the school board of not acting swiftly enough. He referred to Valdes’ suspension as a “five-day vacation.”

“I promise you for the rest of my life, until my dying breath, I’m going to make sure no child goes through what my Deyab-Houssein had to go through,” he said after the meeting. According to the administrative complaint, Valdes stated, “Ah no! The Taliban is here,” when Deyab-Houssein would walk into the classroom at the school. She’d also call on him by saying, “Okay the Taliban, what is the answer?” and “Let’s ask the Taliban.”


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The teacher continued to refer to Deyab-Houssein as “the Taliban,” and “terrorista,” which means terrorist in Spanish, until Wardani complained to the school administration. Deyab-Houssein said other students laughed when she made her remark. He said he didn’t know the teacher was referring to him by the name of a terrorist organisation until he asked his parents what the Taliban is, following the first incident. After learning what the name meant, his response was: “This is definitely not funny.”