BANGOR, Maine (AP) — A Maine high school teacher is complaining that she was forced to remove a small pink Christmas tree festooned with the character Hello Kitty from her classroom.

Catherine Gordon is a math teacher at Bangor High School. She wrote on her Facebook page that "everything offends everyone all the time" and that it "just sucks the joy out of everything."

The news of the pink tree's removal took off on social media Monday. Even Republican congressman Bruce Poliquin weighed in, saying the school went too far in ordering the tree's removal.

WLBZ-TV reports the school superintendent issued a statement saying culture, traditions and holidays must have an educational component and must be tied to curriculum.