Student protests the “racist” strict style rule. And other schools in the country are seeing similar demonstrations.
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And they had better because this new generation of black girls aren’t playing with racist policies or police-they’re fearless, vocal and magic. A video footage shared on Instagram shows a 13-year-old Zulaikha Patel in a tense standoff with private security guards with the help of her fellow schoolmates. You can hear the her yelling, “Arrest us, arrest us”.
“Learners feel that they are not allowed to wear Black hairstyles, such as Afro”.
Pretoria Girls’ High, which was founded in 1902, was all white during apartheid, but since 1990, it has been integrated to all races.
Suspension of the controversial hair style rules followed talks between senior staff members, pupils and Provincial Education Minister Panyaza Lesufi.
“Would she not be allowed at PTA girls?”
The school’s code of conduct dedicates a section to “general appearance”, stating, “All hair must be brushed”.
CNN reached out to both Lawson Brown High School and St. Michael’s.
The students said teachers allege their hair is exotic and the Afros needed to be tamed. Though Phetla graduated from the school in 2014, she claimed that the unwritten rule is still verbally enforced at the school to this day. “If hair is long enough to be tied back, it must be tied back neatly in a ponytail”. “It wasn’t written in the code of conduct, but they tell you that your hair is very untidy and it’s not appropriate. Specifically, the school policy limits the length of the hairstyle”, the education ministry said in a statement. But the use of Afrikaans- a language and culture largely associated with apartheid and racial segregation- is permitted.
The Government’s education spokesperson Oupa Bodibe told CNN, “This is a real problem (and has) caused cultural clashes”.
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And while it’s hard to determine exactly what has been happening to these girls from afar-the hashtag #StopRacismAtPretoriaGirlsHigh has been the most informative source for first-hand accounts-one thing is clear: The students at Pretoria are courageous, proud, and fearless, and they’re making an important statement to the entire world.
