Parents hope new grooming guidelines take effect

Parents who spoke with THE STAR are expressing optimism that the proposal for new grooming policies for schools, if it comes into effect, will bring much-needed relief to Rastafarian students and others who prefer longer hairstyles.

Education Minister Fayval Williams announced recently that a draft policy on grooming would be made available before the September 4 start of the new school year. Williams said that the draft has not been officially finalised in order to give schools a chance to provide feedback that can be implemented in updating the policy. The draft policy, which is the result of a consultative process among education stakeholders, is aimed at reducing discriminatory practices in schools that are based on students' hairstyles and grooming practices while addressing the need for discipline at the school level and the development of wider-reaching societal values.

One mother, whose child is Rastafarian, shared her frustrations, saying, "No matter how neatly his hair is wrapped, there's always a complaint. Teachers have even sent him out of class or interrupted him before devotions to fix his hair." She said that her efforts to advocate for her son's religious expression only seemed to exacerbate the situation.

"My son is humble, he's not a student who answers back to teachers or anyone for that matter, so I can't imagine how he feels when he is at school," she said. "Him tell me already seh 'Mommy, mi can't bother. Mi just do what them tell me to do'. And sometimes the other students them laugh. Imagine your child telling you that and you can't do anything about it."

Another parent pointed out inconsistencies in rules, mentioning that Rastafarian girls in a certain school were allowed to openly wear their hair down, while her son was told to cover his. She recalled an incident in which she described how her son's father engaged in a discussion with the school administration, questioning why some students could forgo head coverings while her son couldn't. Ever since that confrontation, the mother explained that her son has kept his hair uncovered, driven more by his father's passionate stance than anything else.

"It's not long hair alone them stress the children about. If your hair 'bad', dem a tell you fi trim. And that is their definition of grooming," she said.

With the new school year starting on Monday, the parents expressed their desire for the policy to be finalised urgently.