According to the Associated Press, a federal judge has dismissed most claims in a lawsuit filed by a Black high school student penalized for his hairstyle.
The lawsuit was filed by a Black high school student, George, who alleged racial and gender discrimination by school officials over his refusal to change his hairstyle.
A lawsuit has been initiated against the Barbers Hill Independent School District near Houston, Texas. Eighteen-year-old George has accused the district of discrimination and violating his civil rights through its policy on male students' hair length. Barbers Hill enforces a regulation that mandates a certain hair length for male students, arguing that this policy fosters discipline and respect for authority.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Brown presided over the case. While he questioned the effectiveness of the hair policy, he did not find it illegal. As a result, most claims in the lawsuit were dismissed.
George missed a significant portion of his high school classes during the 2023-24 academic year due to his refusal to comply with the dress code. He spent time either in in-school suspension or in an off-site disciplinary program. The school district argued George's hairstyle, worn in tied and twisted locs, would violate policy if untied because his hair would fall below his shirt collar, eyebrows, or earlobes.
The district noted that other students with locs adhered to the hair length policy, leaving them unaffected. George and his mother, Darresha George, responded by filing a federal civil rights lawsuit against the school district last year.
This lawsuit also named Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton, the district superintendent, the principal, and the assistant principal as defendants. They argued that the policy was primarily enforced against Black students.
Despite these claims, Judge Brown did not find sufficient evidence to prove race-based enforcement. Subsequently, officials such as Abbott, Paxton, the district superintendent, and other school employees were dropped from the case.
George's legal team contended that the hair policy violated his First Amendment rights by restricting his expressive conduct. However, this claim was rejected as his lawyer could not provide case law supporting this argument.
Additionally, several due process rights claims under the 14th Amendment were dismissed. This comprehensive legal action faced many hurdles, reducing the scope of the case significantly.
Referencing past judicial decisions, Judge Brown cited a 1970 case where a judge ruled against a school district’s hair length policy. This decision was later overturned on appeal. He highlighted a relevant point: "The presence and enforcement of the hair-cut rule causes far more disruption of the classroom instructional process than the hair it seeks to prohibit.”
In a different case involving Barbers Hill’s hair policy, two other students filed a federal lawsuit in May 2020. One of those students returned to regular classes after a temporary injunction was granted, presenting an ongoing dialogue about the policy’s impact on students.
George's lawsuit argued the punishment he faced violated the CROWN Act, a law prohibiting race-based hair discrimination that took effect last September. However, in February, a state judge ruled that the district’s actions did not breach this legislation. Judge Brown’s decision on most claims does not signify the end of judicial scrutiny on the Barbers Hill hair policy. The next phase will examine the dress code’s gender-based distinctions.
