How Is Hair Discrimination at Schools Still Happening in 2023?

On Aug. 31, a pupil at Barbers Hill High School named Darryl George was punished with one week of in-school suspension. His crime? “Violating” the gown code due the size of his loc’d hairstyle. After returning to class on the morning of Monday, Sept. 18, sporting his hair in the identical fashion — solely this time, twisted and tied on prime of his head — he was instantly issued the identical punishment, in response to NPR. This marked two back-to-back suspensions for sporting locs.

Here’s the factor: Barbers Hill High School is positioned in Texas, the identical state in which Governor Greg Abbott signed the CROWN Act into regulation again in May. The act goals to ban discrimination primarily based on hair texture and protecting hairstyles, like braids, locs, twists, and knots, and 23 states have signed it into regulation to date. In Texas, the laws went into impact on Sept. 1 — someday after directors at George’s college issued the suspension.

This is not the primary time the varsity has sparked nationwide outrage over its prejudiced gown code, both; they did the identical factor to college students DeAndre Arnold and Kaden Bradford in 2020. This prompted a choose for the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas to rule that the district’s hair coverage is in fact discriminatory, inspiring Arnold’s journey to the Oscars with the group behind the award-winning quick “Hair Love.”

While Arnold’s story had a happier ending, the fact is that so many college students are compelled to face unfair self-discipline for merely sporting a mode that protects their pure hair. Clearly, Barbers Hill High School has determined to miss the truth that their “gown code” is blatantly racist. The superintendent, Greg Poole, even acknowledged that the coverage is authorized, saying: “if you find yourself requested to adapt . . . and quit one thing for the betterment of the entire, there’s a psychological profit,” PBS

Meanwhile, that is all taking place in opposition to the backdrop of politicians like Rand Paul, who’re claiming that passing the CROWN Act on a federal degree will not be needed, in response to Yahoo News. It’s all the time disheartening when politicians do not acknowledge the significance of passing legal guidelines to guard Black residents, however it’s infuriating when establishments blatantly break those already set in place for that very objective.

School must be a secure area for studying, the place college students are understanding extra about who they’re as younger adults in the world. Shouldn’t there be extra essential issues to fret about than how Black college students put on their hair?

As irritating as it’s to proceed having this dialog, and no matter what number of occasions circumstances like this pop up, it is crucial to deal with every one with extra outrage than the final. This is the one method to get colleges and politicians to grasp the load of their discriminatory practices. The combat will probably be price it when it’s lastly unlawful to discriminate in opposition to somebody for the best way their pure hair grows out of their head. So, Barbers Hill High School, benefit from the highlight — the world is watching.