A school district in Kansas just dismissed its hair policy. The move comes after an 8-year-old Native American boy had to cut his hair to comply with his school’s policy.
On Thursday, the Girard Unified School District Board of Education voted to remove dress code policy requirements for boy’s hair. The change to the district’s student handbook and hair policy was “effective immediately.”
The previous hair policy for male students did not allow hair that was too long. It could not touch the collar of a crew neck t-shirt, cover the eyebrows, or extend below the earlobes. The school also banned ponytails, rat tails, or any other style that would circumvent the policy.
In November, the ACLU asked that the district and R.V. Haderlein Elementary school officials dismiss the hair policy. It also requested that they “immediately grant [the redacted student’s name] an accommodation allowing him to wear his hair below his shoulders.”
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According to the ACLU’s letter to the district, the boy is a member of the Wyandotte Nation. It is a federally certified Native American Tribe in Wyandotte, Oklahoma. The ACLU did not release the name of the child or his mother.
The boy was to cut his hair in August. The following month, his mother asked for an exemption because of his Native American heritage and spiritual beliefs. Most men in the Wyandotte Nation only cut their hair when mourning the loss of a loved one.
The school’s assistant principal was adamant. The boy’s hair had to go, or he would be sent home.
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The mother ultimately cut the boy’s hair out of fear that her son may face punishment. She also worried he would be unable to go to school. But in the end, the ACLU says her decision “caused him distress.”
On Monday, the ACLU of Kansas’ legal team praised the school board for removing the policy and ensuring the experience will not happen again.
“Sex-based appearance codes reflect and reinforce harmful sex stereotypes, disproportionately discriminate against students of color — in particular by imposing cultural and religious harm — and have nothing to do with a student’s ability to learn,” the organization said in a statement.
“Present-day policies that restrict Native American boys from wearing long hair must be understood in the historical context of separating Indigenous children from their families and tribes and denying them their rights of cultural and religious expression. Corrective action like this is part of moving forward from that painful legacy.”
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The tribe previously told CNN the school and school district need to look closely at its rule governing boys’ hair length because of the unique history with Native American children.
“For centuries, tribal people have faced a siege of cultural oppression. This oppression has taken many forms, including, but not limited to, the forced cutting of Native American men and boys’ hair to impose conformity with dominant White culture and to stifle long-held religious and traditional Native American practices and beliefs,” the tribe said.
It says the issue is a culturally sensitive one that highlights historical traumas for many tribal nations, including their own.
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