Darryl George: Texas judge rules school district can restrict the length of male students’ natural hair

Ranvier@sopuli.xyz to News@lemmy.world – 569 points –
Darryl George: Texas judge rules school district can restrict the length of male students’ natural hair | CNN
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But this all stems from a claim that there is a bigger culture among young black men to have long hair, for cultural reasoning, than for young white men.

The ACLU report goes into detail about this starting at page 21. Pages 21 to 29 cover racial discrimination.

https://www.aclutx.org/sites/default/files/dresscodereport_2-1-24.pdf

RACE DISCRIMINATION Race discrimination is one of the most common and harmful types of discrimination. Racist stereotypes are deeply embedded in our society, and dress codes are no exception. Because many dress and grooming policies are written based on Euro-centric standards of dress and beauty, dress codes have historically marginalized, discounted, and suppressed styles of dress, hair, and grooming associated with Black people and other people of color. For example, some dress codes prohibit hair styles and textures—like Afros, braids, and locs—that are historically associated with African American hair practices. Others prohibit clothes and accessories—like du-rags, hair beads, and picks—based on associations with race and racial stereotypes, particularly those associated with Black people. Rules like these are rooted in racist standards of professionalism and respectability, and they marginalize many students of color.

But if that is the metric used to label a rule/law as racist, then virtually ever rule and law is racist

Yes, systemic racism exists in our society. It is deeply embedded in our intuitions.

Then why talk about heritage at all?

Because it is relevant to the discussion. The wigs specifically are not.

And who is talking about wigs? Not me.

Depends on the culture. Also you’re talking about modern western culture. Not white culture in general. Even the US, which is a baby of a country, has had presidents who had long hair while in office. Almost as late as the 1850s.

The long hair styles were wigs.

Blatant projection.

An argument about wigs being the cultural of heritage of White men in the United States is disingenuous.

You’re trying to have your cake and eat it too. You want to claim heritage when it comes to black people, but then only talk about modern western culture (which you attribute solely to white people) when it comes to white people. The reality is that if we look at modern western culture, even for black people, it’s predominately short hair. If we want to look at heritage of people, there are plenty of white heritages, include in the US itself, of men having long hair. It’s you who has the double-standard. .

This is argument is historically inaccurate. White men in the US have historically had short hair. It's been that way since the early 19th century. Black men have a historical culture heritage of long hair that predates the policing of black hair in the United States.

If this is the metric by which we measure racism, then it’s you who is racist

Ad hominem attacks reduce your argument's credibility. edit: typo

No one is talking about wigs? WTF? Why do you keep lying?

lol. I'm done.

No one is talking about wigs? WTF? Why do you keep lying?

Long hair styles were wigs. Your argument was refuted so now you're relying on splitting hairs over what hair styles actually were.

lol. I’m done.

After calling me a racist too. ROFL XD

Long hair styles were wigs.

Incorrect. And that's a fact (not opinion, maybe you'll learn). It's so easy to look up to make sure you aren't wrong. . .and still you don't? Amazing.

After calling me a racist too.

I just said using your own metric, you're racist. I don't agree with your metric, which should be obvious.

Your argument has abandoned the premise we are discussing in favor of focusing on wigs again. I took the time to add some sources to the lower section of my argument since your argument now rests on splitting hairs over hair styles and ad hominem attacks.

Getting back to the discussion at hand, policies regulating hair length are racist against Black people.

I just said using your own metric, you’re racist. I don’t agree with your metric, which should be obvious.

I'm not forcing people to cut their hair or denying them their cultural heritage. So by my argument's own metric your argument is incorrect about its conclusion. Still though, I have nothing to do with this discussion. Ad hominem attacks about me do not add credibility to your argument. Your argument has been refuted by the evidence presented. Again here is the source.

https://www.aclutx.org/sites/default/files/dresscodereport_2-1-24.pdf

Here is some stuff I learned about wigs that refutes your argument about long hair not being wigs in reference to 19th century US presidents.

Long hair styles were wigs. Your argument even referenced 19th century US presidents with long hair styles. Those long hair styles were wigs which were worn in their youth at the end of 18th century and which were mostly abandoned by those presidents by the time they took office in the 19th century in favor of short hair.

Here is a source that covers the relevant time period. Lincoln occasionally wore a wig.

https://www.sishair.com/presidents-who-wore-wigs/

One notable error in the article is that Washington's hair was powered to make it look like a wig. But that he was a president during the 18th century when wigs were still popular, which explains that fashion choice.

https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/facts/myths/ten-misconceptions-about-washington/

Even though wigs were fashionable, George Washington kept his own hair. He kept his hair long and tied back in a queue, or ponytail.

Although he didn't wear a wig, George Washington did powder his hair, giving it the iconic white color seen in famous portraits. Powdering one's hair was another custom of the time.

As a young man, George Washington was actually a redhead!

This wiki page has some more details backed up by sources. Again, some of these 19th century presidents had worn wigs earlier in life, but Jefferson and John Quincy Adams had, as far as we know, mostly stopped by the time they were actually in office.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wig

In the United States, only four presidents, from John Adams to James Monroe, wore curly powdered wigs tied in a queue according to the old-fashioned style of the 18th century,[21][22] though Thomas Jefferson wore a powdered wig only rarely and stopped wearing a wig entirely shortly after becoming president in 1801.[23] John Quincy Adams also wore a powdered wig in his youth, but he abandoned this fashion while serving as the U.S. Minister to Russia (1809–1814),[24] long before his accession to the presidency in 1825. Unlike them, the first president, George Washington, never wore a wig; instead, he powdered, curled and tied in a queue his own long hair.[25]