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This boy was suspended for having a mohawk.
Well that doesn't suprise me in the least.
I don't know about USA but in private schools in Australia , hair regulations are strictly enforced. Hair over the collar is bound to result in a caution by the school authority and a warning to get a haircut ASAP, otherwise they take disciplinary action :)
I know, i went to a school that had strict hair policies like this. I actually got put on detention for having my hair too short(a contrast to my hair nowadays).
So a Mohawk, being a very 'out there' and unconventional hairstyle is bound to cause some tension with school authorities. Although there are many variables such as country, type of schooling system(public or private)and the school's hair policies. So i can't really say anything further.
That's a weird story. Does the Texas public school system really still grapple with "hair problems" as it was common in the 1970's? I'm surprised - it's 2006, after all.
Suspending a kid for a mohawk because it is "disruptive" - oh well - should I say "different cultures, different rules" ?
How common are hair-style restrictions for guys in Texas schools these days anyway?
Hans-Uwe
How common are hair-style restrictions for guys in Texas schools these days anyway?
--In the US, there isn't really a problem with it at all, but I think this had to do with a private school, not a public one.
If it is elementary school, that means the kid is under 1o or so, so I can sort of see the issue. But still, it's not the school's place to reprimand a kid for their hairstlyle at all.
It depends where you are in Texas as to whether or not different hairstyles will be accepted. I live in the Dallas Metroplex so my school is very liberal about hairstyles. If you walk around my school you'll see guys with ponytails, mohawks, mullets, rat-tails, etc.
This boy was from the panhandle, which is a very rural and conservative part of the state, so I'm not surprised that he was sent home for his mohawk.
I did a quick search on Tulia, Texas, and found these tidbits:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UN/LOCODE:USTIA
http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2000-07-28/pols_feature3.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/29/opinion/29HERB.html?ex=1143867600&en=91699328dcea6961&ei=5070
Any town that arrests 10% of its black population on the say so of one questionable cop with little or no hard evidence doesn't strike me as the type of place that would hesitate kicking a 7 year old kid out of school and fining his family based on the opinions of one jackass of a school principal concerning the kid's hairstyle. It is amazing to me how downright ignorant some so-called educators can be and how hard hearted, mean spirited, and un-nurturing some of the people are that we put in charge of our children.
--Doug
All the kids should get mohawks in honor of the boy. Perhaps all the adults in the town too. See what great ideas the principle comes up with next.
It's fun in a way to see schools grappling with hair that they find too SHORT! While we get harassed with haircut demands, there's not a damned thing they can do to make too-short hair longer but wait for it to grow.
When I was in high school, several of the seniors at one school in town shaved their heads. After telling several longhaired kids that they could not come back until their hair was shorter, the administration felt there was little they could do in fairness but tell these kids they could not come to school until their hair had grown out. It's been a long time, but my memory is that they were banned from school for growth of two weeks to happen. The exclusion period included the prom and they were not happy.
Bill
Was?
We have all heard of urban legends. This could be one. If it is not, and there is evidence that this happened to a child recently in Texas, then there are steps which should be taken.
The Texas affiliate of the ACLU should be called, and the facts of the case presented.
It is very important to recognize that the boy did not disrupt the class. Rather the teacher showed his inability to maintain control of the class. It was the students who made a futz about the boy's hair who disrupted they class, and it is they who should have been disciplined.
If this really happened, I think there is a fascinating legal case.
James
I hate the Dallas Independant School System. I grew up in it. I only 10 miles from it.
But what can with do about bigotry. Write letter to your school systems when they do something stupid, I guess.
America seems to be going through another nasty period of social devisiveness and intolerance. TV censorship. School uniforms. Kid's haircuts.
Uniformity-- now THAT's distracting!
so tell the students and school officials to focus on his hair in between classes. it's not like he's wearing some extra revealing clothes, or has bad hygiene or something like that...
One thing that occurs to me in this flap:
what seven year old kid is old enough to know what kind
of hair style they want?
