For as long as schools have policed hairstyles as part of their dress codes, some students have seen the rules as attempts to deny their cultural and religious identities. To school administrators, strict dress codes can be tools for promoting uniformity and discipline. In recent years, schools have faced pressure to reconsider their policies. Nowhere have school rules on hair been a bigger flashpoint than in Texas. A trial this week is set to determine whether school administrators can continue punishing a Black teenager for refusing to cut his hair. The student, Darryl George, wears his hair in locs tied atop his head.
