A 13 year-old Kansas eighth grade middle school student claims he was suspended from school Wednesday for not removing his Vera Bradley purse television station KCTV reported Wednesday.
"I don't think everyone should be treated differently,"Skyler Davis said Wednesday. "Everyone should have the same privileges. It expresses myself and I think everyone else can wear it, so I wear it as well. I went to the office and I refused to take it off, and they suspended me.
The Anderson County School District allows students to have certain bags in particular areas of the school building.
"We strive to make sure we treat every kid alike and there are classroom rules we expect kids to follow," Don Blome superintendent of the school district told KCTV5 Thursday. "They can bring (bags and purses) to school. There's no policy against that. But the classroom rules are that they can't bring it to the classroom. We are not going out there to discriminate against anybody. That's been a long-standing rule (it dates back at least 10 years."
The news is the latest development for the brand known for creating products catered to a person's preferences.
"Vera Bradley creates products that allow all of us to express our individual style. We encourage self-expression through color and design," the company said in a statement KCTV reported.
Skyler's mother, Leslie Willis, wants to put an end to the nonsense.
"We're going to have to find some compromise in this," Willis told KCTV.
"I was a little furious, and I called the school (and spoke to Hillard) to re-verify the story, and yeah, he refused to take off his Vera Bradley bag, nothing more to it. Skyler has been going to school since August with that same Vera Bradley bag on, hasn't taken it off. What is the problem?"
'He was pulled into an office behind closed doors to tell him that he was never suspended for refusing to take off his purse he got suspended for foul language. That's not the story that Mr. Hillard told me yesterday. Skyler is only 13 years old. He's just a child. And if this isn't bullying, I don't know what is. Skyler can speak freely about what's bothering him. I have taught him this. Now the school is upset because he spoke out."
