Parents outraged after letter suggests students get better hairstyles before holiday concert
Parents at an Ohio school said that officials are deliberately targeting the hairstyles of African American students after they sent out a letter demanding that they go see a barber or a hairdresser to tame their afro hairstyles ahead of a holiday concert, Local 12 news reports.
School officials forwarded a letter to parents at Pleasant Run Middle School that outlined appropriate hair choices, while specifically banning styles that are typically worn by Black kids like mohawks and large afros.
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The letter also referred to the styles as “outlandish” further angering parents, while suggesting that students opt for more conservative hairdos.
“Them sending home something like this is sending a message that it’s not okay to show up in our natural state,” said Marlicia Robinson whose daughter is in the choir.
“My daughter wears an afro to school on a regular basis. That’s her regular hairstyle, she has a lot of hair. It’s going to be large. That’s just what her hair does, that’s what our hair does as black people.”
The letter also stated that students who did not comply with the grooming standards would be punished by way of having their choir grade forfeited.
“I think that it’s his first year, he’s a black teacher and I just think he didn’t want to rock the boat,” Robinson said.
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After parents posted the letter on Facebook, the Northwest School District responded and said it did not share the teacher’s sentiments about the grooming standard.
“Today we were made aware of guidelines sent home to students for the upcoming chorus concert. This message was not approved by PRMS administration and does not reflect our views at all. PRMS apologizes for the letter. We will address this issue on Monday morning and new communication about the concert will be sent home Monday afternoon.”
“I think they should really address the climate here at this school and have some in-depth conversations around cultural diversity. There’s no reason why this teacher should have felt comfortable sending that home,” Robinson said.
The concert is still scheduled to go on this Thursday.
