After serving more than a month of in-school suspension over his dreadlocks, a Black student in Texas was told he will be removed from his high school and sent to a disciplinary alternative education program on Thursday.

Darryl George, 18, is a junior at Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu and has been suspended since Aug. 31. He will be sent to EPIC, an alternative school program, from Oct. 12 through Nov. 29 for “failure to comply” with multiple campus and classroom regulations, the principal said in a Wednesday letter provided to The Associated Press by the family.

Principal Lance Murphy wrote that George has repeatedly violated the district’s “previously communicated standards of student conduct." The letter also says that George will be allowed to return to regular classroom instruction on Nov. 30 but will not be allowed to return to his high school’s campus until then unless he’s there to discuss his conduct with school administrators.

Barbers Hill Independent School District prohibits male students from having hair extending below the eyebrows, ear lobes or top of a T-shirt collar, according to the student handbook. Additionally, hair on all students must be clean, well-groomed, geometrical and not an unnatural color or variation. The school does not require uniforms.

George’s mother, Darresha George, and the family’s attorney deny the teenager’s hairstyle violates the dress code. The family last month filed a formal complaint with the Texas Education Agency and a federal civil rights lawsuit against the state’s governor and attorney general, alleging they failed to enforce a new law outlawing discrimination based on hairstyles.

The family alleges George’s suspension and subsequent discipline violate the state’s CROWN Act, which took effect Sept. 1. The law, an acronym for “Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,” is intended to prohibit race-based hair discrimination and bars employers and schools from penalizing people because of hair texture or protective hairstyles including Afros, braids, dreadlocks, twists or Bantu knots.

A federal version passed in the U.S. House last year, but was not successful in the Senate.

The school district also filed a lawsuit in state district court asking a judge to clarify whether its dress code restrictions limiting student hair length for boys violates the CROWN Act. The lawsuit was filed in Chambers County, east of Houston.

George’s school previously clashed with two other Black male students over the dress code.

Barbers Hill officials told cousins De’Andre Arnold and Kaden Bradford they had to cut their dreadlocks in 2020. Their families sued the district in May 2020, and a federal judge later ruled the district’s hair policy was discriminatory. Their pending case helped spur Texas lawmakers to approve the state’s CROWN Act. Both students withdrew from the school, with Bradford returning after the judge’s ruling.

link: https://www.aol.com/news/black-student-suspended-over-hairstyle-220842177.html

  • worldwidewave
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    2509 months ago

    Maybe try teaching the guy more, and caring about his hair less.

    • crawley
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      1369 months ago

      But that completely defeats the purpose! (which is the racism)

      • @HughJanus@lemmy.ml
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        79 months ago

        I don’t think it’s racism, just a school with fucking insane rules that should never be allowed:

        Barbers Hill Independent School District prohibits male students from having hair extending below the eyebrows, ear lobes or top of a T-shirt collar, according to the student handbook. Additionally, hair on all students must be clean, well-groomed, geometrical and not an unnatural color or variation. The school does not require uniforms.

        Why the fuck schools give a single shit about how kids dress themselves or wear their hair is beyond me.

        • candyman337
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          Those rules are there to be racist, these types of dress codes were literally invented to be exclusionary and/or erase culture to “”“assimilate”“” populations of native people.

  • @halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world
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    1689 months ago

    So… Where is the catalog of approved haircuts for students to pick from? Fucking fascist ideas being masked in bullshit like avoiding fake “distractions” in classrooms.

  • IHeartBadCode
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    1359 months ago

    Principal Lance Murphy is literally just going to die on this hill apparently. Between the massive cost the school district took because of the 2020 court loss over this exact same thing, and this giant L the school district is about to take for not only being now in Violation of Federal Law but also Texas literally passed a law, because of this asshat and the 2020 loss, indicating that he’s not legally allowed to do exactly what he’s doing.

    The school district also filed a lawsuit in state district court asking a judge to clarify whether its dress code restrictions limiting student hair length for boys violates the CROWN Act

    Which if you are unsure if your policy is violating a law or not, you should likely not have the policy until the court gives you more clarity. Because if the Courts do indeed indicate that the school is in violation of Texas’ CROWN Act, they’ve just handed this kid millions of dollars in restitution, which I guess they can just pile on top of the millions this school district has blown so far on litigation.

    You would think that at some point taxpayers would be up in arms, but nope it’s Texas, blowing billions on stupid lawsuits is their thing.

    • snooggums
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      489 months ago

      How does a previous case not automatically make the current situation unacceptable? Do they have to retry the exact same situation over and over again?

      • @stolid_agnostic@lemmy.ml
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        589 months ago

        Because principal is a bully and willing to use his powers to destroy lives. The methods to protect people are very slow and so he gets away with it for years until the district loses a major lawsuit. Then he quietly gets reassigned or retires and we pretend the entire thing never happened.

      • 520
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        129 months ago

        A previous case is certainly a good argument in court, however the opposition may be able to argue material differentiating circumstances that may not be immediately obvious (in general, not in this case). That is why it isn’t considered an automatic win.

      • @ellabee@sh.itjust.works
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        39 months ago

        if I understand correctly, it’s actually more illegal now, because Texas passed the CROWN act after the previous 2.

        I suppose there may be differences that make a difference to the outcome, but it seems unlikely here.

    • @originalfrozenbanana@lemm.ee
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      369 months ago

      To be fair being racist has long been a winning strategy in Texas so you can imagine that their bag of tricks isn’t particularly deep in matters like this

    • FuglyDuck
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      199 months ago

      blowing billions on stupid lawsuits is their thing.

      That and blowing money on highschool football stadiums.

    • plz1
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      159 months ago

      I’m not a kid, but looking back on this type of situation as an adult, I’d settle for half of whatever they offer as long as the administrator(s) driving this were also banned from all public education jobs in the state, permanently. Fines to the district aren’t a deterrent to bad administration on their, but fear of job security absolutely is.

    • @zeppo@lemmy.world
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      109 months ago

      That’s our Fiscal Conservatives. Ready to spend endless money on stupid bullshit but very upset about spending that actually helps the populace.

    • fadingembers
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      59 months ago

      Fuck it makes me so mad when schools make boys cut their hair. My little brother had to cut his hair that he had been growing since he was in his single digits. It was devastating. This was back in the early '00s

    • BolexForSoup
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      59 months ago

      What is the state apparatus for if not funding private interests through frivolous lawsuits?

    • @Mirshe@lemmy.world
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      29 months ago

      Nah, they’re not asking. This is a setup for a challenge of the CROWN Act and a possible reversal. Just watch, they’ll appeal it all the way up to Texas Supreme Court if they need to.

  • @Ghyste@sh.itjust.works
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    1139 months ago

    So their guidelines are openly discriminatory at best, and openly racist otherwise…

    It’s mind-blowing how quickly the US is regressing because we’re kowtowing to a miniscule minority.

    I’m openly curious how well a “liberal” minded individual who isn’t afraid to be an asshole would be received.

    • @PoliticalAgitator@lemm.ee
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      289 months ago

      Largely, the problem is that the far-right shows up.

      No matter how tiny the power grab, they’ll have someone there to grab it, often unopposed.

      • deweydecibel
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        69 months ago

        The problem is largely the structure of our democracy. The left shows up, they showed up more in the last decade than they ever have. And we’re still sliding backward.

        Because the way our idiotic system works, the number of people that show up matter less than the zip code they show up in.

    • juiceclaws
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      109 months ago

      I’d love to see what a liberal asshole politician would look like, but i can’t see it working out today. As much as the right blows wokeism out of proportion, PC culture is still a thing in a lot of liberal areas, and if you’re not PC as a liberal politician I imagine you’ll offend the more sensitive parts of your own base. Didn’t Bernie Sanders get hit with some of that? And he wasn’t even that assholeish, he just showed a spine.

      • @DarthBueller@lemmy.world
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        29 months ago

        Ilhan Omar’s treatment of a woman asking for her political support in opposition to female genital mutilation was pretty close to being a liberal asshole politician (or it revealed her to be trying to have her cake and eat it; namely, that she takes positions designed to get liberal support, and simultaneously strategically acts like a regressive when it comes to FGM to get support from African hijabis and other Islamists).

    • @afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
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      69 months ago

      I’m openly curious how well a “liberal” minded individual who isn’t afraid to be an asshole would be received.

      Carlin died an old man rich and successful

    • @pinkdrunkenelephants@lemmy.cafe
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      I’m openly curious how well a “liberal” minded individual who isn’t afraid to be an asshole would be received.

      Speaking from experience here, people will actively, and sometimes collectively, attack you for it. They’ll gang up on you online. They’ll openly and often violently bully you in real life. They’ll even abuse the legal system to get rid of you if they are angry enough at you.

      Being an asshole towards shitty people (and the vast majority of humans are shitty people, myself included) is very VERY enlightening on how our rights and our laws are just a thin veneer covering what really governs our lives, and that is our feelings. Most humans could give a fuck less about logic, facts or the truth; they only care about their emotions and what they want because they are only connected to the real world through their emotions, not their minds.

      Humans are no better than base animals and being willing to be a horrifying House-level dick towards those you think are deserving demonstrates this, really handily.

      It doesn’t surprise me that poor young man was forced to go to an alternate school where the diploma he’ll get won’t be as respected by the colleges he’ll apply to. He probably told them off for being so blatantly racist and, in their hurt, they kicked him out.

    • @DarthBueller@lemmy.world
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      49 months ago

      Are we kowtowing to a miniscule minority? The only kowtowing I personally observe are academic institutions within states with GOP-dominated legislatures and courts. K-12 schools in progressive areas within such states have to tread carefully to keep the man off their back, and public universities have to carefully craft their language relating to research and programs. But largely it’s a semantic game, where the substance doesn’t change but the language used is toned down to avoid attention of asshats. Similar to any research related to human sexuality when there’s a Republican president in the White House and the NIS/NIH leadership is dominated by GOP appointees - they don’t change the research, but they absolutely rework the language used to describe the project.

    • DrMango
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      239 months ago

      You’re perfectly free to do things exactly as you’re told. Capiche?

    • @Asafum@feddit.nl
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      89 months ago

      It’s just the accent, it’s actually: “land of the fee, home of the brave racist.”

        • @rifugee@lemmy.world
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          49 months ago

          If you’re a rich white Christian and a man AND good looking, then you can do pretty much whatever the fuck you want.

          • @pascal@lemm.ee
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            19 months ago

            Not rich, not white (for America’s standards), not Christian, not good looking.

            I think I’ll enjoy my life here in Europe.

            • @rifugee@lemmy.world
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              19 months ago

              I’m planning on starting the emigration process within the next few years because it’s starting to become obvious that the US will never get its shit together. Too many selfish hypocrites holding things back. I understand that the grass isn’t always greener, but I’m confident that it will at least taste better with those sweet sweet European social services.

    • @skozzii@lemmy.ca
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      The entire US culture that the world sees is a lie. Anyone who lives or has visited is aware, but all these other people watch movies and think American is some magical land.

      Nah, wealth is just built on slavery and opression.

      Modern day slavery in jails and low wages tied to healthcare.

  • zanyllama52
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    819 months ago

    It’s just hair. Why is the school district so interested in restricting hairstyles?

    • AphoticDev
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      689 months ago

      It’s not just hair though. It’s the fact that a black student challenged a decision they’ve made.

      • @dustyData@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        Specifically, it seems the school was explicitly told to target a single student in order for opening a way for the Governor to challenge the CROWN act in courts. It’s pure political maneuvering. Picking scapegoats and destroying individuals to advance racists agendas.

    • @banneryear1868@lemmy.world
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      09 months ago

      I’m wondering if there’s more going on but the story is focusing on the most absurd detail. Its America though so I wouldn’t be surprised either way.

      • @DillyDaily@lemmy.world
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        29 months ago

        It sounds like there have been a few other code of conduct violations and the schools issue with his hair style was the final straw. Who knows if the previous “violations of the code” were also rooted in racism, but either way, a hair style should never be the ultimate reason someone is expelled unless they’ve purposefully shaved an offensive slurr into their hair.

    • @PutangInaMo@lemmy.world
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      -39 months ago

      Looks like it’s part of a uniform requirement. It’s part of the “make them all look the same, that will stop bad behavior”.

      Public school shouldn’t be that way and it’s stupid in general. I went to “management school” for most of my middle school years and they did that to stop kids from fighting over colors and shit. Kinda made sense there though because we were all “bad apples”.

  • @SlikPikker@lemmy.ca
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    729 months ago

    Barbers Hill Independent School District prohibits male students from having hair extending below the eyebrows, ear lobes or top of a T-shirt collar, according to the student handbook. Additionally, hair on all students must be clean, well-groomed, geometrical and not an unnatural color or variation. The school does not require uniforms.

    Land of the fucking free.

    Call me when the HOA allows you to plant clover on the front lawn.

      • Madlaine
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        9 months ago

        To be fair it could maybe be counted under unnatural variations.

        He is styling it in a way that is not typical for the society he actively participates in.


        (second part not necessarily connected to your comment anymore)

        But I think it’s stupid to ban hair styles anyway. I often had some classmates with weird hairstyles and guess what, didn’t distract me from school.

        In my opinion the dresscodes for school should be:

        • cover your genitals generously, ass and boobies (regardless of gender. I think there isn’t place for shirtless guys in school outside of the gym). In general that means pants/dress/skirt and a shirt/top, but I wouldn’t care if they wear a toga or whatever.
        • don’t wear extreme political symbols or other obviously widespread offensive symbols (e.g. a swastika)
        • unless absolutely required by your religion, or physical reasons like a burnt face, never wear anything that covers your face. (medical masks in case of illness or pandemics excluded)

        And that should be it (this list includes my limitations on hair styles and tattoos as well)

        • @canuckkat@lemmy.world
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          I know the Western world still isn’t into it, but kids should be allowed to wear masks if they’re sick or trying to prevent illness. Like they do in Asian countries.

          Especially by the point they’re in high school.

          • Madlaine
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            29 months ago

            Thanks for the input. honestly I forgot about masks, I would allow them as well.

            I’m more against wearing a bandana mask for fun and edgyness; or to not be identified if you trash the elevator, etc.

        • @Emerald@lemmy.world
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          39 months ago

          I think there isn’t place for shirtless guys in school outside of the gym

          Why is it acceptable some places but not others to you?

    • @PlantJam@lemmy.world
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      99 months ago

      Texas actually has a pretty great law about replacing lawns with drought tolerant alternatives. This article gives a good summary: https://greenrightnow.com/hoas-must-consider-drought-tolerant-landscaping-under-new-law-passed-by-texas-legislature/

      The article mentions some concerns about still allowing HOAs to require homeowners to submit plans for approval, but in my experience just mentioning the state law is enough to get any denial overturned.

  • @Peaty@sh.itjust.works
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    719 months ago

    I hope the family successfully destroys the finances of the people involved in these super racist decisions.

        • @Garbanzo@lemmy.world
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          Yes it should. The school administration answers to elected officials who represent the tax payers/voters. If the community doesn’t like spending money on racist bullshit they should vote for someone with a god-damned lick of sense.

    • SirStumps
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      I don’t think it’s racism tbh. I went to a Texas highschool and they tried to make me cut my hair when I was younger. I am biracial and never did I consider it racial. Is it a dumb rule? Yes. It was created during the hippy era as a stand of some sort.

    • @ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca
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      It won’t, it’s not a racist policy. The people enforcing it probably are but if anything it’s a homophobic policy

      The problem is hair length not hair style

      Though some religious beliefs prevent cutting hair so there may be something there

      • @clanginator@lemmy.world
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        369 months ago

        By implementing a hair policy that excludes styles and lengths which are clearly a part of black culture and a way of expressing identity in America, the policy is racist. Whether or not the intent was racism, it still has the effect, making it a racist policy. It can also be discriminatory towards queer people and other cultures.

        • @ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca
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          59 months ago

          I’ve seen a lot more white people with long hair than black people

          But the punk/metal movement has always been progressive

          • @clanginator@lemmy.world
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            I think it’s a bit of a stretch to say that any hair that is ‘relatively long’, ‘not geometrical’, or ‘unnatural color or variation’ is “clearly part of black culture.”

            Good thing that’s not what I said. The policy doesn’t exclude all black hairstyles, but many of the hairstyles that would be excluded are sources of cultural/personal identity for black Americans.

            it doesn’t seem to be written to target any particular culture

            Literally what I spent my first comment explaining - it doesn’t have to be written to target a specific culture to be a racist policy. Oppression is not determined by the intent of the oppressor, but by the lived experiences of the oppressed.

          • Cethin
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            89 months ago

            That’s the issue with systemic racism. It’s designed to not look particularly racist until you examine in detail the things it effects. Many traditional black hair styles are going to violate some portion of that rule. Dreads almost certainly need to be longer and afros probably wouldn’t fly, for example. Most typical white styles are fine though.

      • phillaholic
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        79 months ago

        The word you were searching for is sexist. I’ve been saying since the initial article that this might be unconstitutional under Bostock v. Clayton County.

      • Ook the Librarian
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        59 months ago

        You are saying the language of the written policy is not racist. It’s ultimately for a jury to decide whether the policy in action is racist.

        • @ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca
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          39 months ago

          You hold a higher opinion of the American public than I do if you think a jury will find something racially motivated that isn’t overtly so

          • Juries are peak society.

            There is no higher power coming to decide things for us, it’s only us.

            A good trial attorney can explain complex and even uncomfortable things to random people in an engaging way that anyone can understand. Don’t have to rely on the jury’s ability to understand something for themselves, just their ability to learn, and the lawyer’s ability to inform.

  • @febra@lemmy.world
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    689 months ago

    This is how america is destroying its youth and their future just because they refuse to comply with their racist demands. This is how the entire world sees america.

    • @dasgoat@lemmy.world
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      419 months ago

      Especially non-white youth. These ‘rules’ are designed specifically as a bludgeon to use against poc.

    • @Misconduct
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      49 months ago

      Well have fun judging an entire country based on a shit tier school in one of our most shit tier red states. What utopia free of all racism are you from?

  • @pascal@lemm.ee
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    659 months ago

    I keep hearing America is the land of freedom and that Europe is way more racist than America.

    This story would have never happened in Europe. Suspended because of a hairstyle, wtf.

    • geogle
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      69 months ago

      This is a newsworthy isolated incident. It’s newsworthy because of the ridiculous stance of the principal.

      Can we talk about France’s stance on hijabs in school?

      • @canuckkat@lemmy.world
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        329 months ago

        Not isolated at all. Black kids (especially girls) get targeted all the time. It’s usually ignored or doesn’t make the news.

      • @Rengoku@lemm.ee
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        139 months ago

        Lol if you think banning hijab as a good whataboutism example wait till you hear your hair is banned and must wear hijab to even attend public school.

        • Just here to point out that UK schools have also illegally forbidden some students from wearing afro hairstyles. In that case and this one, it’s against the law. The hope is that this treatment will not continue in both cases. We don’t need to resort to playing the suffering Olympics or whose country is worse pissing contests

      • Can we talk about France’s stance on hijabs in school?

        lmao, what?

        ANY religious clothing is banned in France. This isn’t Discriminatory, as it applies to Christians, Buddhists, Hindus etc just as it does to Muslims.

        Maybe actually inform yourself before you start with whataboutism?

        • @DragonTypeWyvern@literature.cafe
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          The law in its majestic equality forbids Christian, Atheist, and Muslim alike to pray facing Mecca, to wear hijabs, or dresses that look a little too “ethnic.”

          • Bro, did you read my Comment? ANY religious Activity or Clothing is banned, no matter which Religion these Activities come from. Stop trying to somehow shoehorn discrimination into this.

            • @Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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              That’s literally how every discriminatory law in a country with protections against descrimination works. It bans anyone from doing something that primarily is done by the group you’re trying to target.

              In states like Georgia where lots of black churches assist their congregation with overcoming the hurdles republicans set in place to make it harder for black and brown people to vote they ban religious organizations from assisting in the exact ways the black churches were assisting. Voter ID laws disproportionately affect poor and minority voters who often have difficulty obtaining and maintaining a current ID and often don’t drive at all due to the high cost of car ownership. These laws don’t explicitly state “people with dark skin aren’t allowed to vote” but surpressing black voters is both the goal and effect of these laws

              If you literally write “no hijabs” the law will be struck down in a heartbeat, so instead they write a law that says “no religious clothing” because what religious clothing do people wear? Hijabs.

              But I’m sure you already knew this, because you either have to be extremely dense or pretending to be extremely dense for the sake of supporting discrimination to make the argument that you did

              • @pascal@lemm.ee
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                29 months ago

                So basically, all your post can be summarised into “we don’t like democracy and blacks are not really people, but at least we’re not France”?

                My god I didn’t know about the voter ID thing, that’s Draconian!

                • @Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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                  19 months ago

                  I think you need to re-read the thread I had responded to. I was providing examples of racist laws that have painfully obvious goals without explicitly stating the racist part out loud.

                • @Trainguyrom@reddthat.com
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                  59 months ago

                  That’s where the design of the US government was somewhat ingenuous. Rather than explicit rules that may become outdated or prevent needed action in a timely manner, it was designed as a framework to allow the government to flex and change as times change.

                  The one thing that wasn’t foreseen was a consolidated takeover of both a significant portion of government and journalism by the same vested interests, combined with intense consilidation of private businesses into unfathomably massive and powerful monopolies

        • @gmtom@lemmy.world
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          109 months ago

          Actually the French law allows for students to wear crosses. So it doesn’t really apply to Christians.

        • @Estiar@lemmy.world
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          Then that school policy is fine too, as it bans Anyone from wearing dreadlocks. This applies to the white Texans, the Hispanic Texans, the Black Texans etc.

          That reasoning doesn’t work. It’s targeted against a certain group of marginalized people just like the Hijab law and the same principle.

      • @blindbunny@lemmy.ml
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        Can we talk about France’s stance on hijabs in school?

        Yeah. I support it. I also support this young women’s choice to hair style.

        Your false equivalency says more about you then anything else you wrote.

        Get every fucking church out of public school and tax them.

        • @pinkdrunkenelephants@lemmy.cafe
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          Okay, so how much money would it cost to get you to openly admit what happened to this dude is wrong and it’s irrelevant what happens in other countries?

          $10 via Cashapp? Venmo, perhaps?

    • AggressivelyPassive
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      589 months ago

      It’s baffling to me, that the US always claims to be the champion of freedom, but runs most of their education like part-time prison camps. My school here in Germany didn’t give a crap about anyone’s appearance. If you’re street legal, you’re fine in school.

      • Well, it’s because they have to prepare us for prison as an adult. Wait until you find out that American schools are largely funded by property taxes. Which means rich neighborhoods that pay more in property taxes have generally way better schools than poor neighborhoods.

        The United States is like a villain from a scooby doo episode. In every episode the “monster” is a person of color, or illegal immigrant, or an LGBTQ person. But when they catch the “monster” and pull its mask off. It’s old man US government every god damn time.

      • @LemmysMum@lemmy.world
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        That’s because you were raised to be a functioning member of society with enough tools to potentially succeed or excel.

        They were raised to fail upward while grifting and scamming on the side while fighting for the opportunity to be a wageslave and entering a lottery to be successful. Or risk prison and become an actual slave as allowed in their constitution.

      • @TheActualDevil@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        Ooh! I’ve got a thing about this!

        In an Episode of the Youtube series Under the Blacklight, David Blight, a Yale professor brought something up that I think brings the American idea of “freedom” into a different context. He says “This whole new idea of what’s liberty and liberty for whom, can also kill. Especially when it replaces the idea of Liberty as that which has to be shared in some kind of common good.”

        The idea isn’t really new and is actually deeply rooted in America’s past through to it’s creation. Freedom should be a group concept in which we maximize freedom for the populace. Instead it’s seen as individual freedom only. When you combine this with the idea that freedom is the most important thing, it results in people coming to the conclusion that they are justified in anything in the process of attaining what they want. And they’ll use whatever tools they have available to attain this in as straight a path as they can.

        America has always been a champion of personal freedom, whatever they say. It’s founding was about a bunch of business men who didn’t want to pay taxes so they staged a rebellion. There’s still a heavy bent against taxes with the main argument being people don’t want the government to have any power, but really it’s because individuals just want to keep their money while disregarding the ways in which that money would improve the good for all people. At it’s core America is a Selfish nation built of selfishness and getting yours before someone else takes it.

        It gets more a little complicated when talking about motives of those in power, but boils down to the same, and they retain that power primarily by banging the “personal freedoms” drum.

        To quote famed Discworld philosopher Granny Weatherwax,

        “There’s no grays, only white that’s got grubby. I’m surprised you don’t know that. And sin, young man, is when you treat people like things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.” “It’s a lot more complicated than that–” “No. It ain’t. When people say things are a lot more complicated than that, they means they’re getting worried that they won’t like the truth. People as things, that’s where it starts.” “Oh, I’m sure there are worse crimes–” “But they starts with thinking about people as things…”

        Thank you for coming to my TED talk

        • @geissi@feddit.de
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          49 months ago

          I generally agree that that freedom in the US is mostly seen as ‘my personal right to do anything I want’.
          But that’s exactly what is being restricted here. An individual’s personal freedom to wear the hairstyle they want.
          So how does that explain the restrictiveness of US schools?

          • @TheActualDevil@lemmy.world
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            19 months ago

            Because that individual doesn’t have the power to enforce their personal freedom. The Principal does have the power to enforce their idea of what the “correct” look is. The principal isn’t concerned about raising conditions for the group in actuality, they just want reality to conform to their idea of what they desire it to be. For them, it’s within their rights to their own freedom to bring everything that makes them uncomfortable to heel. Anything that they don’t like is an affront to their personal freedom to make everyone do what they want.

            • @dustyData@lemmy.world
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              39 months ago

              Except skydaddy psychos think they do have more rights to impose their rules and beliefs over others, which is an active attack to other’s rights. So no, on publicly funded institutions, skydaddy has no place and shouldn’t be allowed in.

              • @afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
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                -19 months ago

                Really? Did you interview each and every single one? I was a theist and I had zero interest in doing that.

                Sorry you don’t believe in freedom of expression

                • @dustyData@lemmy.world
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                  9 months ago

                  Get out of here with your stupid “freedumb of eshpreshon!” Separation of church and state is a pillar of democratic, tolerant and peaceful societies. That means, no religion in public schools. No one is stopping anyone from being as religious and practice whatever they want in their home, or even in public on the street. But as soon as they put a feet on a publicly funded institution, they must abide by the law above all. Not the mandates of their imaginary friend. Freedom of expression doesn’t mean free from public responsibility.

      • @BetaBlake@lemmy.world
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        -109 months ago

        Man this is one school run by just a few people, all it takes is one goofy bastard to suspend a student. This isn’t an “US” issue

        • @Cerothen@lemmy.ca
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          129 months ago

          This doesn’t make a lot of sense in context, sure Texas has twice the land of Germany, but Germany has 2.5 times the population of Texas.

          Though I agree Texas is likely not representative of all the USA.

        • juib
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          129 months ago

          Please shut the fuck up with this “but the US is big” excuse for every single topic, it doesn’t explain or excuse anything at all

        • AggressivelyPassive
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          119 months ago

          I’m hearing these and similar stories from all over the country.

          It’s not just about schools, either, but also colleges and education in general. And if you think about it, a lot of life too. Jaywalking for example. That’s a crime that simply does not exist elsewhere.

  • Flying Squid
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    649 months ago

    Imagine being sent to the school with all the unruly and undisciplined kids because of your hairstyle. Crazy and so fucking racist.

    • @agitatedpotato@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      219 months ago

      Isn’t this in Texas or somewhere equally as shitty? They would have sent him to prison for his hair if they could have. School to prison pipeline is real.

      • Enkrod
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        9 months ago

        Texas passed the CROWN-act to combat hair-based racial discrimination because that very same school already lost two cases where they discriminated black youths because of their hair.

        For once Texas is on the right side.

      • @CileTheSane@lemmy.ca
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        79 months ago

        So if it was some freaky white chick with pink and purple hair all over the place would it be racist then? Because those policies apply to them too. Don’t be ignorant.

        Okay, where are the white kids being penalized by this rule?

        It doesn’t matter if “these rules apply to white kids” if they are only actually applied to poc.

          • @CileTheSane@lemmy.ca
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            69 months ago

            “My niece has multicolour hair and hasn’t actually been suspended” is not the argument you think it is.

              • @CileTheSane@lemmy.ca
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                59 months ago

                Of course it’s not, because she’s white.

                “She hasn’t been suspended because she’s white” is definately not the argument you think it is.

                (Yes, I know that wasn’t your intention but man, be careful how to word things maybe.)

                Let’s take a look at the 2 situations here:

                Situation 1:

                POC going to a public school being disciplined due to their hair style.

                Situation 2:

                White kid going to a private school threatened with discipline due to their hair style, but not actually disciplined in any way just because their parents went in to talk to them.

                I don’t know how any rational person looks at these and thinks “totally the same thing.”

              • Flying Squid
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                39 months ago

                Question: Are black people ever affected by racism in any significant way?

          • Flying Squid
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            29 months ago

            private school

            This boy was in public school. Private schools can be much more descriminatory.

  • @detinu@lemmy.world
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    609 months ago

    They don’t want to be communists and they’re literally doing what the communists in my country used to do

    • @protist@mander.xyz
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      669 months ago

      They are being authoritarian, likely your country was also under an authoritarian regime in the past based on what you’re saying. Systems of economy are kinda separate

    • flipht
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      279 months ago

      They want to be authoritarians, whatever flavor they have to be to have power.

      They don’t want anyone else to have power over them.

      So when they’re in the out group, they’ll ramp up the persecution narrative, and when they’re in power, they’ll ruthlessly repress everyone else.

      All makes internal sense, if you’re an asshole.

    • TigrisMorte
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      29 months ago

      Not remotely communist nor were the folks in “your country” communists regardless of what anyone claims. Always apply the “Is North Korea really a Democracy” test to any such labeling.