According to the Daily Mail, which covered the story, members of the public attending the Philadelphia Girls’ High School prom were asked not to react as the students collected the scraps of paper. They could neither speak nor clap. But the audience laughed at Hafsa Abdur Rahman’s dance. The director did not like this and refused to give the diploma to the young lady. After a few seconds of discussion, she put the diploma back in the basket and moved on to the next student.
“I’m so embarrassed”
“She stole my moment,” the student told the TV station WPVI. “I’ll never get it back.” The student said she cried and was very embarrassed.
The young girl’s mother and grandmother strongly condemned the decision and demanded an apology from the school. “How can a student be punished for what the public has done?” They were surprised.
Two or three other young women seem to have been given the same treatment. At the end of the ceremony they received their diplomas.
If the school didn’t respond, the School District of Philadelphia issued a press release explaining that it “will not tolerate degrees being denied because family members encourage graduates.” The district administration apologized and asked the school to ensure that such incidents do not happen in future.
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