Jul 20, 2013 11:03 AM EDT By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

A Tucson, Ariz. college student has filed a lawsuit stating she was unrightfully suspended from school for discrimination against the Spanish language, the Tucson Times reported.

The lawsuit, filed by Terri Bennett, claims that Pima Community College (PCC) unfairly suspended the nursing student for objecting to other students in her class speaking Spanish.

Atlanta attorney Phil Kent and GOP activist John Munger are representing Bennett and announced the claims in a press conference Monday. They said they would seek a six-figure claim against the college.

PCC spokesman C.J. Karamargin said the claims were "entirely without merit."

He said the school "denies that any of Ms. Bennett's legal rights were violated and denies that the lawsuit has any basis."

Bennett's case has been picked up by the group Pro-English, of which Kent is a representative. The group advocates for English being the official language of America and that everyone learn to speak it.

The issue began in 2012 when a student sat in the front of the classroom and spoke often during lectures.

"This other student constantly talked during the class and disrupted the class," the complaint said. "She spoke primarily in Spanish."

Bennett was then placed in a study group in which she was only person whose first language was English. The other students spoke Spanish to each other and she could not understand them.

Bennett told PCC she wanted Spanish banned from the classroom, but was denied and, according to the complaint, the disruptions continued. She brought the issue up with David Kutzler, the director of the nursing program, and he allegedly called her a "bigot" and a "bitch."

According to the complaint, he accused her of discriminating against Mexican Americans. After another meeting with Kutzler and school officials, she was informed she had been suspended.

Neither PCC nor Bennett discussed further examples and events from the complaint because it is an open case.

"When this type of concern arises, the College conducts a review and, when necessary, takes appropriate corrective action," Karamargin's statement read. "We are confident the evidence will demonstrate that the College acted appropriately with respect to Ms. Bennett's situation."

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