A young swimmer was temporarily suspended from competing in a school swim meet for wearing a Black Lives Matter costume.
Leidy Lyons, 12, wanted to show her support for the movement in Duluth, Minnesota, US.
She created her own swimsuit and planned to display the anti racism message, born in the days after George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis in May 2020.
According to NAACP president Classie Dudley, the girl made the swimsuit after hearing about the shooting of Amir Locke by Minneapolis police last week.
But an official tried to disqualify Leidy, and the saga rumbled on four hours as they changed their reason for the ban to logo size, rather than a political stance.
Eventually, Duluth YMCA officials overturned the decision and removed the person who made the initial ruling.
She was reinstated and allowed to compete on Sunday.
"An independent volunteer official inappropriately barred a student athlete from taking part in the meet, due to their 'Black Lives Matter' swimsuit, stating that it 'went against USA Swimming's policy of no political language," said the Duluth Area Family YMCA, which sponsored the event at Superior High School.
NAACP president Classie Dudley said the original decision to exclude her from the event was misguided.
"The official originally stated that it was politically motivated and that it goes against their policy of no political speech," she told CNN.
"Leidy is 12 and she's trying to share the fact that she matters. There's nothing political about that.
"Black Lives Matter isn't a logo like Adidas and if you're telling me that Black Lives Matter has been whittled down to a political statement or a logo, then you're basically telling me that Black lives don't matter."
The girl's mother Sarah Lyons went on local radio to say her daughter wore the swimsuit because the Black Lives Matter movement is important to her.
"She is very passionate about social justice," the parent said. "She has been through a lot already at a young age. It's a big part of her, which I think is wild at 12."
In a statement, the YMCA said diversity and inclusion was a priority.
"The Duluth Area Family YMCA is committed to being an anti-racist organisation and stands with BIPOC communities throughout the Northland and throughout our country," it read.
"We know that Black Lives Matter and we will continue to work to educate ourselves, to stand against inequality, and to strive to be active allies in the ongoing fight for diversity, equity, and inclusion."
