Story of the Day: Girl Shamed by Classmates at American School for Irish Accent & Traditions

How would you feel if you migrated to another country but found it hard to fit in? Find out how Celine deals with the cruel treatment from her American classmates because of her accents and traditions.

Celine is a 16-year-old girl who emigrated from Dublin, Ireland, to a small town in the US. The town was an idyllic "Bible-belt" town that didn't get many foreigners like her and her family.

She joined the local high school and was enrolled as a sophomore. The first few weeks she spent at the school was a learning experience for her as she tried to adjust.

The move was not her idea; however, she had no choice since both her parents got job opportunities that would better their lives in the US, hence the migration.

Celine did not like it very much; her classmates in school could not get past her accent, often asking her silly questions like if she had ever set eyes on a leprechaun or if her people back home wear buckle shoes and live in stone huts.

Some even went as far as asking her to quote some famous characters. Her appearance did not help the matter; she had shocking red hair, pale skin, freckles, and a thick accent.

Celine does not care and is determined not to be a show pony for her classmates who think her country is still stuck in the 1700s.

Celine could think of a million other places she would enjoy being, most of which were in Ireland back with her friends and other family members.

But the teenager could feel her bond with her friends from Ireland fading— the time difference made it difficult to keep up with them since Ireland was ahead of the US by hours.

One day in history class, Celine was called upon to regale the class with tales of how life was back in Ireland. She decided she would do no such thing and said as much.

Her refusal pointed her out as an anti-social bully, and the school immediately demanded a sit down with her and her parents because they were bothered about her well-being.

Celine does not care and is determined not to be a show pony for her classmates who think her country is still stuck in the 1700s.

Should Celine have spoken about her country? Was she wrong to have refused her teacher? What would you have done differently?