Why a 11-Year-Old Black Michigan Boy Potentially Prevented a School Shooting — and Got Suspended For It

A Michigan community is perplexed and angry after a middle school student is being treated like a criminal for courageous act potentially prevented yet another mass school shooting. l.

It all went down at the Dwight Rich School of the Arts in Lansing when Sakir Everett noticed a student brandishing a gun in May. The 11-year-old successfully disarmed the student, removed the bullets, and even took apart the firearm. Instead of giving the boy his flowers for his bravery and selflessness, he was expelled. You read that right— Sakir was expelled for the entire school year by the Lansing School District all because he didn’t tell the staff immediately about the incident.

Now, Savitra Mcclurkin, Sakir’s mother, is expressing how “frustrated” she is. She told Lansing local news station WILX 10: “I’m at my wits end. I don’t know what to do.” During a Lansing School Board meeting last week, Savitra told the Board how her seventh grader and A/B student had “never been in trouble before.”

She described his sudden expulsion as “devastating because he’s a bright kid and all he wants to do is be a kid.” The distraught mom also revealed her son, whom she says was terrified in the moment but thought he was helping students around him, has a hunting background, which is why he was able to disarm and disassemble the gun.

A GoFundMe was created for the family after Sakir’s mother “had to take on the enormous challenge of educating him at home. This has forced her to cut back on work, creating serious financial strain on their household.” So far, the fundraiser— which praised his instinct to not run away— has raised nearly $12K of it’s $18K goal. Sakir is now enrolled in a non-accredited online program, per reports, only because accredited platforms are honoring the school district’s decision, so they refuse to enroll him. It’s unclear what happened to the student who actually brought the loaded gun to school in the first place.

“He was trying to protect his classmates,” Savitra told WILX 10. “He didn’t want to implicate himself in it, nor did he want to tell on the person that actually brought the firearm. Because he knows firearms aren’t supposed to be in school.”

Seems like the school district didn’t feel the same way.

In a statement to WILX 10, they said Sakir’s expulsion was a “last resort” but was “necessary” after “a thorough investigation, and in accordance with Michigan law regarding dangerous weapons on school property.” They added that, “Expulsion is never a decision the district takes lightly. […] However, Michigan law provides very clear direction in cases involving dangerous weapons. The investigation—which included statements and video evidence—left no ambiguity and required this outcome.”

The school district said they have a “legal and moral responsibility to ensure the safety of all students and staff. While this decision is difficult, our priority remains creating and maintaining a secure environment where learning can take place without fear.”