Glow in the Dark White
Okay, so Pearland, Texas, is between here and Galveston. It’s pretty redneck but there is a growing upper middle class African American population moving to Pearland.
The redneck population didn’t get the memo.
A 13 year old junior high student who had never been in any trouble whatsoever before, got a fade haircut. It was a stylized M – no gang symbol or special meaning – just an M.
He got called to office and told he was in violation of the dress code. He wasn’t.
He was told that he could either be in in-school suspension or let the administrators – get ready – color in the fade with a black magic marker.
How white do you have to be to think that would work? Seriously. How white?
He picked the magic marker because he didn’t want to miss out on the track team. So, they did it. And the student got teased by other students because it looked like crap.
The young man’s parents were never called or asked if the school could write on their kid’s head.
They are going to rewrite the dress code. Ya think?
The parents asked the school administrators get some training in these matters. So far,, they have been ignored.
They are suing. I do not blame them. In fact, I thank them for taking on this battle.
They colored it in with a black magic marker. Oh Lord, white people.
As if Mid school is not pressure enough! What’s wrong with people? We lived thru ’50’s ducktails, ’60’s hair touching the collar etc……I’m more concerned half of the staff packin’
1That school district owes the student an apology and they need to be educated!
Overheard in the junior high office; “Oh, that ain’t that bad…”
2About 1968, one of my high school classmates was suspended by a PE coach for too long hair. “It’s disrespectful.”
About 1996, one of my son’s high school classmates was suspended by a PE coach for too short hair. “It’s disrespectful.”
You may draw a different conclusion. My conclusion is that high school PE coaches just like to bully kids.
3Al Pacino offers some thoughts…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMx-Lv_eZ3s
4Discipline Room? Discipline Clerk? Choice of Discipline? Wonder how long before the NAACP shows up. Probably long before a paid in full college tuition.
5I don’t know if skin color is the determinant, but I seriously wonder about their intellects. How about a school boosting cap…
6White Pearland school administrators most likely can’t understand why they can’t wear blackface anymore, but you’re not gonna pry that magic marker out of their cold dead hands.
7IIRC the “M” is the first letter of either the school name or the school mascot.
8The school district in Pearland has been run by and for the white christian right for decades. At one time the school board was controlled by First Baptist, the school superintendent attender there, and high school teachers openly had prayer and bible classes during school hours.
I went before the school board ten years ago to remind them that requiring christian prayer before meetings was forbidden if students were there. Several informed me that they would not be persecuted for their beliefs and would continue their practice. An attorney from the ADL threatened legal action if they didn’t stop so they changed their policy so the choice of prayer rotated among board members. That meant that the vast majority of the time the prayer ended in JAYSUS NAME. They’re a den of vipers.
9Does black marker work on grey/white curls? Asking for a friend….
10Well, damn! They were trying to hide what they considered disrespectful? With Magic Marker? Obviously that school has never made up its mind as to what is disrespectful and otherwise. Helpspitandamn, I went 12 years to a Catholic school up north. For the first 8 years we wore our own clothes. Once I moved on to the high school, all of us girls had to wear a navy blue sack-like uniform worn over what was deemed disrespectful (our bodies) but the boys did not have a uniform of any sort. Sumbitch. My kids and grandkids have gone their own way on religion. Can’t say as I blame them.
11My daughter came home from high school with purple hair. Her mother and I said nothing. Next day it was back to original. I didn’t care about hair color, just grades
12The mounted police who led a handcuffed, bipolar man (do I need to add “black”?) through the streets of Galveston on a leash last week will face no charges. I’m sorry, but that wins the outrage prize by several orders of magnitude.
https://www.vox.com/identities/2019/8/6/20757026/galveston-police-donald-neely-arrest-horses-texas-investigation
13Jeez Louise, the school name is MILLER. Couldn’t they just be proud of a little school spirit if they thought the very nice (imho) cut meant something? That poor kid!!! As if middle school wasn’t tough enough.
14Lawsuit filed: https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/lawsuit-3-pearland-isd-employees-sued-after-using-permanent-marker-to-color-in-students-haircut
Interesting to read the comments section to this story. Pearland has not changed since I spent a few years down there in the 70s. Heck it hasn’t changed in 200 years…the Klan was/is based in this area….
15Okay, truth: I’m embarrassed to be a native son of Texas. I learned decades ago to hide most of my accent….thank god. And I haven’t lived there since l968. But, I am white. I am embarrassed to be white. Maybe I’ll use a Magic Marker. If you wonderful supporters of the Beauty Shop turn Texas blue, perhaps all this could change.
16Those comments take me back to Georgia in the ’50s.
I have a suggestion for the judge who eventually rules against the Pearland 3: Let the punishment fit the crime: make them use black Magic Marker on themselves for an all-over deeeeeeep tan.
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