COLUMBIA HEIGHTS — Students at Columbia Heights High School have staged a protest after the school board voted to retain a board member accused of making disparaging comments about Muslims.

The entire student body, accompanied by teachers and the principal, walked out the front doors of school Wednesday morning.

Students went back to class after a half-hour peaceful protest.

School board member Grant Nichols has denied that he wrote the comment. The comment posted using Nichols’ Facebook identity said that Muslims are unsanitary and do not clean up after themselves. It has since been deleted.

A vote to remove Nichols failed at Tuesday night’s board meeting. Nichols did not attend, saying he was concerned about his safety.