Treyvion Gray, 18, isn’t allowed to participate in his high school graduation ceremony because his dread locs are too long, reported Forth Worth Star-Telegram. Gray is suing Texas’ Needville Independent School District as well a number of school faculty and staff for racial discrimination.
The district dress code prohibits boys from growing their hair past their ears and eyebrows. Gray said the code is racially and sexually discriminating because his locs are an expression of his Blackness. The suit claims he had been disproportionately targeted and penalized by the dress code which not only affects him but also other Black students who wear their natural hair.
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More on the suit from Star-Telegram:
“The length of locs have no bearing on NISD Black students’ capacity to learn, yet the wholly arbitrary Dress and Hair Policy restricts the mobility of Black students in public and private spaces, deny them equal educational opportunities, and strike at the freedom and dignity of the NISD Black student population,” the lawsuit says.
In a video interview with KPRC, Gray is seen with locs that have grown past his ears, eyebrows and shirt collar. The district dress policy, which “is established to teach hygiene, instill discipline, prevent disruption, avoid safety hazards, and assert authority,” says boys cannot have hair that long.
Source: Another Black Texas Student Faces Hair Discrimination
