Is it Racist? Kid Sent Home For Having Dreads
Here’s a little lunchtime nausea-fest for you! According to BuzzFeed, 7-year-old Tiana Parker from Tulsa, Oklahoma, was sent home from her elementary school because she wore dreads in her hair – which broke the school’s dress code banning “faddish hairstyles,” including afros, dreadlocks, and mohawks.
Check out the story from KOKI News:
So, as always we ask you – is it racist? On one hand, some commenters have said that they believe “rules are rules,” and Tiana needed to follow the dress code just like everyone else. On the other hand, though, are the rules themselves racist? Afros and dreadlocks are often the only hairstyles that work on black children’s hair without having expensive and harmful chemical treatments or weaves. So is Deborah Brown Community School effectively calling African-American hair “inappropriate” in and of itself?
What do you think? Let us know in the comments!
September 10, 2013 @ 10:38 am
Braids, dreads, or plaited hair are all styles that young AA girls can wear that is more manageable to work with on a day to day basis, and has been a staple in AA culture for years, it doesn’t belong in the same category as something like a Mohawk. An Afro I can sort of understand because it is more of a fashion choice, but the others I mentioned have to do more with practically and manageability, would they tell the young white males they can’t wear their hair straight and long?