Her school even threatened to withhold her diploma if she continued to "slander" the Trump supporters.
A Christian school in Tennessee has barred a student from campus and all school events, including her own graduation ceremony, because she came out as gay. The school has since backtracked on its threat to withhold her diploma since the story got media attention.
Morgan Armstrong, a senior at Tennessee Christian Preparatory School in Cleveland, came out in April in a post to her social media accounts. The teen uploaded a collection of photos with her girlfriend and a caption that read, "Cats outta the bag," along with a rainbow emoji.
Looking for some preemptive support, Morgan messaged several friends asking them to like the post.
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"Go and comment on my post, I have some ruthless Trump supporting 'jesus' mfs on there," Armstrong wrote in the private message.
Soon after, Armstrong's family got a message from the school, summoning them to a meeting.
"Saying they wanted to talk to me about a post, I figured it was the social media post that I'd posted about my girlfriend," Armstrong told WSVM News in Nashville.
What happened next blindsided the teen.
In the meeting with principal Kylie Machacek and head of schools Jared Tilley, Armstrong and her father were presented with a letter from the school describing a patently false version of her coming out story.
The letter read, "Morgan posted on social media platforms, such as Instagram, a disparaging remark, reflecting the people at Tennessee Christian. The vulgar and disrespectful comment produced the wrong perception of who Tennessee Christian is and what we represent, Christ. The comment reflected on the institution, faculty, staff, alumni and students in the most negative possible way."
The letter included a photo of the private message Armstrong sent to friends about the "ruthless Trump supporting 'jesus' mfs."
The letter went on to say that Armstrong was banned from campus, all school events, and the school's commencement ceremony.
The school also threatened the senior with more punitive actions: "Morgan will not comment about the school or people associated with the school. If online slander continues, records of posts and messages will be forwarded to colleges and universities as part of a comprehensive student file."
"If the above are not adhered to, Morgan Armstrong's diploma will be withheld." The school also threatened to share her social media posts with colleges if she continued to "slander" them.
Said Armstrong's mother, Monica: "I was shocked and then I went to anger."
Her daughter said it was "nerve-wracking" enough just to come out.
"I knew everyone would have different opinions, some would like it, some would hate it," she said. But she had no idea she would be kicked out of school for coming out -- based on an inexplicable lie.
Given that, the family decided to sue Tennessee Christian Prep.
"Morgan did not write anything about the school at any time," said Daniel Horwitz, the Armstrongs' attorney. "She didn't post anything about the school, and the private message was not about the school."
According to the family's lawsuit filed Monday, first-time social media violations should result in just a one-day school suspension, as defined in the student handbook. That is, if her coming-out post was, in fact, a violation of school policy.
As to disparaging the school publicly or privately, it didn't happen. The "ruthless Trump supporting 'jesus' mfs," she contends, were family members and had nothing to do with the school.
Asked if school officials had a right to punish students they deemed in violation of school policy, Horwitz said, "That's OK, follow your own disciplinary policy. Which the school did not do here."
On the day she was scheduled to graduate, the one-time star basketball player at Tennessee Christian held a small protest near the school with her family.
"It was difficult having to stand across the street knowing that the people I've grown up with for the last four years were able to walk across the stage and I wasn't allowed to," Armstrong said.
Now the school is backtracking on its threat to withhold her diploma.
"Despite this supposed legal dispute, Tennessee Christian remains fully committed to delivering Morgan Armstrong's diploma," a statement from the head of school states, according to WSMV 4. "We wish Morgan Armstrong the very best as she continues her academics in college."