Christian Teen Forced by School Officials to Change 'Inappropriate' Pro-Abstinence T-Shirt

Earlier this month, Summer Schreiner, a 15-year-old student at Clearlake Middle School in Cocoa, Fla., was told to change her pro-abstinence t-shirt after officials deemed it "inappropriate." The teen acquired the shirt, which read, "Don't drink and park... accidents cause kids," at a Christian conference she recently attended. But the message was apparently too offensive for education officials -- so they took action.

"I got through lunch, and on my way back, the assistant principal tells me I need to go to the office and change my shirt," she told WOFL-TV. "I was pretty upset. I thought it was silly. It's not like I was wearing a curse word or something that was promoting violence."

Schreiner got the shirt at "The Silver Ring Thing," an abstinence conference that is held in cities across the nation. During the event, teens pledge to wait until they're married to have sex. In exchange for this promise, they get a silver ring.

WOFL-TV has more:

According to the young girl's mother, Angela, the most humiliating part of the experience came when her daughter was asked to change into a shirt the school designates for students who do not have appropriate attire. The message on the new t-shirt read, "Tomorrow I will dress for success."

The family found this particularly humiliating, because they believe Schreiner made a positive life choice at "The Silver Ring Thing" and that the t-shirt she originally wore simply reaffirmed that. In the words of her mother: "It was really humiliating for her, because she came dressed for success."

The school district has doubled-down on its decision to force the young girl to change her shirt, citing a dress code policy that disallows any clothing "which contains sexually explicit or oriented wording." There is also a restriction on any dress that "infringes on the rights of others."

The family disagrees that the shirt violates these standards, citing textbooks that educate students with similar messages as what was found on Schreiner's shirt. District officials, though, remain unmoved by these arguments.

"This is not a situation of whether or not the district agrees or disagrees with sexual abstinence among teenagers," explained Michele Irwin, director of communications for the district. "It's about the fact there is sexual innuendo on the shirt, and so we believe it violated our dress code policy."

What do you think? Let us know in the comments section.

(H/T: Christian Post)