On Dec. 5, a Texas high school suspended a Black student again for not changing his hairstyle because of a dress-code policy.
Eighteen-year-old Darryl George was suspended for 13 days because he wore his locs down. It was his first day back at Barbers Hill High School after spending a month at an off-site disciplinary school.
In August 2023, George was pulled out of his classroom because his locs fell below his eyebrows and earlobes, which violated the dress code. He was placed in a cubicle away from the classroom, and in October following the suspension, was sent to disciplinary school. School officials said that George was sent to the disciplinary school for violating the dress code and tardy policy, disrupting the in-school suspension classroom and not complying with school directives.
George’s family says that the dress code violates the CROWN Act— which prohibits race-based hair discrimination — and that they were working with state lawmakers to amend the law so that it deals with the question of hair length.
Candice Matthews, the vice chair of the Texas Coalition of Black Democrats, said that the school district was exploiting the law’s “vague language” to “push their racial discrimination agenda toward our children.”
The citation issued to George on Dec. 5 says that he will be allowed to return to regular classes if he corrects his dress-code violation.
