Author: Jenna White | San Francisco Hairstylist
February 13th, 2020
February 13th, 2020
As of January 2020, in the United States it is not illegal to discriminate against someone's hair type at school or in the workplace. Only California, New York, and New Jersey have passed laws protecting employees and students from this blatant form of bias. Instances of the prejudice are exclusively related to racial identity. This makes the lack of protection feel negligent, considering it has been a federal offense to discriminate against someone for their race, sex, color, religion and national origin since 1964 (EEOC Timeline).
A recent example of this has made headlines across the United States. DeAndre Arnold, a Texas teen, has faced in-school suspension - a policy that bars him from the classroom - for failing to cut his long dreadlocks. The Arnold family was told that if DeAndre wanted to return to the classroom, and walk in the Barber Hill High School's graduation ceremony later this year, he would have to cut his dreadlocks shorter to comply with the school's handbook and rules.
The school’s 2019-2020 handbook states: “Male students’ hair will not extend, at any time, below the eyebrows, or below the ear lobes. Male students’ hair must not extend below the top of a t-shirt collar or be gathered or worn in a style that would allow the hair to extend below the top of a t-shirt collar, below the eyebrows, or below the ear lobes when let down", as reported by the New York Times.
Barber Hill's High School released the following statement on January 21st, 2020: "Barbers Hill ISD has a long standing dress code, but we absolutely allow dreadlocks. What we do not allow is any action that circumvents or violates the provision regarding hair length. The student in question was NEVER forbidden from attending school. The U.S. Constitution allows a school board the right to implement local community expectations, and Barbers Hill ISD’s continual academic and extracurricular successes are a direct result of our communities’ high expectations" (USA Today).
The Texas district of Mont Belvieu has backed the school. District superintendent Greg Poole stated: "There is no dress code policy that prohibits any cornrow or any other method of wearing of the hair. Our policy limits the length. It's been that way for 30 years" (The Hill). Considering we're in the 21st century, having, and supporting, a thirty-year-old policy that dictates the way boys are allowed to wear their hair at school is appalling and disappointing.
DeAndre and his family have chosen not to cut his dreadlocks because they are an expression of his Trinidadian heritage. DeAndre shared that "My hair [is really] important to me because my dad is from Trinidad and, you know, it's part of our culture and our heritage. And I really wish the school would kind of be open to other cultures and just at least let us try to tell you some things. Don't just shut us out" (NPR).
Considering the grave circumstances, there is a silver lining in this story. On February 9th DeAndre and his mother attended the 2020 Academy Awards via an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles provided by renowned NBA basketball player Dewayne Wade, his talented wife Gabrielle Union, and director of Hair Love Matthew Cherry. Hair Love is an Oscar winning short animated film. When accepting the award in February of 2020, Cherry shared that “Hair Love was done because we wanted to see representation in animation. We wanted to normalize black hair. There’s a very important issue that’s out there, the CROWN Act. And if we can help to get this passed in all 50 states, it will help stories like DeAndre Arnold, who’s our special guest tonight, stop to happen" (CBS). Ellen DeGeneres and Alicia Keys also surprised the teen with a $20,000 scholarship toward his college tuition on an episode of "The Ellen Show" aired on January 29th (CBS).
You too can support the movement behind making hair discrimination illegal by signing the following petitions. It's all done online and takes less than ten seconds.
Shout out to my home state of California for being the first to introduce The CROWN Act (Senate Bill 188) and to sign the bill into law. We currently have a huge opportunity to redefine how the United States treats hair related discrimination.
A recent example of this has made headlines across the United States. DeAndre Arnold, a Texas teen, has faced in-school suspension - a policy that bars him from the classroom - for failing to cut his long dreadlocks. The Arnold family was told that if DeAndre wanted to return to the classroom, and walk in the Barber Hill High School's graduation ceremony later this year, he would have to cut his dreadlocks shorter to comply with the school's handbook and rules.
The school’s 2019-2020 handbook states: “Male students’ hair will not extend, at any time, below the eyebrows, or below the ear lobes. Male students’ hair must not extend below the top of a t-shirt collar or be gathered or worn in a style that would allow the hair to extend below the top of a t-shirt collar, below the eyebrows, or below the ear lobes when let down", as reported by the New York Times.
Barber Hill's High School released the following statement on January 21st, 2020: "Barbers Hill ISD has a long standing dress code, but we absolutely allow dreadlocks. What we do not allow is any action that circumvents or violates the provision regarding hair length. The student in question was NEVER forbidden from attending school. The U.S. Constitution allows a school board the right to implement local community expectations, and Barbers Hill ISD’s continual academic and extracurricular successes are a direct result of our communities’ high expectations" (USA Today).
The Texas district of Mont Belvieu has backed the school. District superintendent Greg Poole stated: "There is no dress code policy that prohibits any cornrow or any other method of wearing of the hair. Our policy limits the length. It's been that way for 30 years" (The Hill). Considering we're in the 21st century, having, and supporting, a thirty-year-old policy that dictates the way boys are allowed to wear their hair at school is appalling and disappointing.
DeAndre and his family have chosen not to cut his dreadlocks because they are an expression of his Trinidadian heritage. DeAndre shared that "My hair [is really] important to me because my dad is from Trinidad and, you know, it's part of our culture and our heritage. And I really wish the school would kind of be open to other cultures and just at least let us try to tell you some things. Don't just shut us out" (NPR).
Considering the grave circumstances, there is a silver lining in this story. On February 9th DeAndre and his mother attended the 2020 Academy Awards via an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles provided by renowned NBA basketball player Dewayne Wade, his talented wife Gabrielle Union, and director of Hair Love Matthew Cherry. Hair Love is an Oscar winning short animated film. When accepting the award in February of 2020, Cherry shared that “Hair Love was done because we wanted to see representation in animation. We wanted to normalize black hair. There’s a very important issue that’s out there, the CROWN Act. And if we can help to get this passed in all 50 states, it will help stories like DeAndre Arnold, who’s our special guest tonight, stop to happen" (CBS). Ellen DeGeneres and Alicia Keys also surprised the teen with a $20,000 scholarship toward his college tuition on an episode of "The Ellen Show" aired on January 29th (CBS).
You too can support the movement behind making hair discrimination illegal by signing the following petitions. It's all done online and takes less than ten seconds.
Shout out to my home state of California for being the first to introduce The CROWN Act (Senate Bill 188) and to sign the bill into law. We currently have a huge opportunity to redefine how the United States treats hair related discrimination.
Further Resources
- The Hill, Texas school district faces backlash after student told he couldn't walk at graduation unless he cut his dreadlocks short, January 21, 2020
- USA Today, Texas teen banned by high school from attending graduation after refusing to cut dreadlocks, January 24, 2020
- NBC, Gabrielle Union invites Texas teen who was told to cut dreadlocks to the Oscars, January 30, 2020
- CBS, Texas Teen DeAndre Arnold Attends Oscars With ‘Hair Love’ Team, Gets Shoutout During Acceptance Speech, February 10, 2020
- Hair Love, story overview on www.matthewacherry.com
