A Gwinnett County high school teacher said she was left a note in class Friday telling her that her Muslim headscarf "isn't allowed anymore."
“Why don’t you tie it around your neck & hang yourself with it...,” the note said, signed "America!"
Mairah Teli, 24, who teaches language arts at Dacula High, said she feels the note is in reaction to Donald Trump's victory in the presidential race.
“I feel children feel safe making comments that are racist or sexist because of him," she told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Gwinnett County Schools spokeswoman Sloan Roach said in an email that the district is "doing all it can to identify the person who wrote and left this note."
Teli said the administration and fellow teachers were very supportive after she informed them she found the note.
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Teli, a California native who grew up in Gwinnett, suspected it was from a student.
She said she was shocked and disturbed but worked to be measured when she addressed class. She told the students she was happy to speak with them if there were questions about her hijab.
“We are living in a time when there is a lot of disagreement, a lot of conflict,” she told The AJC. “It’s important to teach them how to disagree (respectfully)."
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The incident comes amid reports from around the country about hate rising after the election of Trump, who has proposed a ban on Muslims entering the country. The reports have come even after Trump attempted to strike a conciliatory tone in his acceptance speech Wednesday morning.
In Gwinnett's neighbor to the west, DeKalb County, officials say a teacher is under investigation after a post election tirade in class about illegal immigration.
Teli shared her experience with friends and family on Facebook to raise awareness of what she fears could be part of America's new era.
"Spreading hate isn't going to 'make America great again,' " she wrote.
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