Teacher who told student to ‘speak American’ returns to work

CLIFFSIDE PARK, N.J. – A teacher who sparked protests at a New Jersey high school when she told a Spanish-speaking student he should instead “speak American” has made a school-wide apology and has returned to the classroom.

Cliffside Park School District officials say English teacher Laura Amico returned to work Tuesday after delivering an apology to staff and students over the school’s public address system.

Dozens of students at the high school in the heavily Hispanic district walked out of school earlier this month after a video clip surfaced in which Amico admonished a student for not speaking English.

The teacher said on the video: “Men and women are fighting. They are not fighting for your right to speak Spanish. They are fighting for your right to speak American.”