Students at a US high school have staged a braless protest after a fellow classmate was reprimanded by the principal for not wearing a bra.

Kaitlyn Juvik, a senior at Helena High School in Montana, was told she was making students feel “uncomfortable” for not opting to wear underwear with a shoulderless black top. According to the principal, Steve Thennis, the decision to go braless was a direct violation of rules, despite there being no dress code or uniform at the school.

Fellow female students were quick to defend Juvik over the issue; starting up a retaliatory Facebook group (titled ‘No Bra, No Problem’) shortly after the incident. Also, in an act of solidarity, a prearranged ‘braless’ demonstration took place on campus, with students reportedly opting to go without bras to all their lessons.

“What I was confronted about was wrong,” Juvik told MTN News. “As long as nothing is showing and you’re covered up, girls should not have to wear a bra.”

“The fact that I was told it makes people uncomfortable offended me because it’s my body,” she added. “It is my natural body and I’m not sure why that is uncomfortable to somebody.”

Despite the backlash against the decision – the Facebook page has 3,000 likes and is drawing comments from across the world – Thennis refuses to back down. In a statement released in response to the action, he shrugged off any critics of the ruling. “I’m not going to check student’s undergarments,” he said. “(But) we are going to ask them to dress appropriately and if we feel it is inappropriate, male or female, we are going to ask them to cover up.”