School Files Appeal on NA Boy's Hair
Wednesday July 1, 2009
We've talked periodically about little Adriel Arocha, a Native American kindergartener in Texas. Adriel wanted to keep his hair long, because his family says it's part of their spiritual beliefs. Although the school segregated him for most of the kindergarten year and had him taught in an In-School Suspension setting (yeah, in kindergarten!), back in January a Federal judge ruled that administrators could not force him to cut his hair.
Now, the Needville Independent School District has filed an appeal on the case, saying that the "judge’s ruling “hijacked” the district’s authority to “regulate its population.” Superintendant Curtis Rhodes believes Adriel's father, Kenney Arocha, has worn his hair long for more than a decade because of “personal choice” rather than religious conviction. Apparently, during the January hearings, Rhodes complained that Arocha was "unable to provide him with "written evidence of their beliefs, a religion that could be researched or a tribal affiliation.”
Um, hello? Since when do all religious belief systems even have written evidence of anything? The family is Native American. They don't have a great big book o' rules like the Big Three, and the problem is that Rhodes and his supporters are viewing all spiritual paths through the Dominant Religion Lens. The judge in the case, Keith Ellision, ruled that it didn't matter if there was written evidence of the belief system existing, but that what was key was that "Plaintiff Arocha is only required to show that he himself has these ‘deeply held religious beliefs,’ which he has done."
Now the school district has filed an appeal arguing that Arocha's hair length is not a matter of spiritual belief at all, but of personal choice. The appeal claims that Ellision "erred in ruling the application of the Needville ISD’s grooming code violated Adriel’s freedom of religious exercise and freedom of speech."
So here's the big question. Are one's religious beliefs no longer valid if they cannot be documented under public scrutiny? Who gets to decide whether a religion is a valid one or not? In modern Paganism, we have many people who follow an eclectic blend of spiritual traditions. Many others follow a family-based system. Even among those who claim the same "label," there is still a lot of room for wiggling - not all Wiccans agree on every principle, nor every Druid or Asatruar. For many of us, the only documentation is what we ourselves have compiled. In the case of the Arocha family, does it matter that there is no specific documentation of their Native American beliefs, as long as they believe those things to be sacred? It's clear that Curtis Rhodes thinks he's entitled to make the call, so I'll be interested to see if a Federal appeals court agrees with him.
And really, how culturally insensitive is it to use the phrase "regulate our population" when referring to someone who's part of a minority group?
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Now, the Needville Independent School District has filed an appeal on the case, saying that the "judge’s ruling “hijacked” the district’s authority to “regulate its population.” Superintendant Curtis Rhodes believes Adriel's father, Kenney Arocha, has worn his hair long for more than a decade because of “personal choice” rather than religious conviction. Apparently, during the January hearings, Rhodes complained that Arocha was "unable to provide him with "written evidence of their beliefs, a religion that could be researched or a tribal affiliation.”
Um, hello? Since when do all religious belief systems even have written evidence of anything? The family is Native American. They don't have a great big book o' rules like the Big Three, and the problem is that Rhodes and his supporters are viewing all spiritual paths through the Dominant Religion Lens. The judge in the case, Keith Ellision, ruled that it didn't matter if there was written evidence of the belief system existing, but that what was key was that "Plaintiff Arocha is only required to show that he himself has these ‘deeply held religious beliefs,’ which he has done."
Now the school district has filed an appeal arguing that Arocha's hair length is not a matter of spiritual belief at all, but of personal choice. The appeal claims that Ellision "erred in ruling the application of the Needville ISD’s grooming code violated Adriel’s freedom of religious exercise and freedom of speech."
So here's the big question. Are one's religious beliefs no longer valid if they cannot be documented under public scrutiny? Who gets to decide whether a religion is a valid one or not? In modern Paganism, we have many people who follow an eclectic blend of spiritual traditions. Many others follow a family-based system. Even among those who claim the same "label," there is still a lot of room for wiggling - not all Wiccans agree on every principle, nor every Druid or Asatruar. For many of us, the only documentation is what we ourselves have compiled. In the case of the Arocha family, does it matter that there is no specific documentation of their Native American beliefs, as long as they believe those things to be sacred? It's clear that Curtis Rhodes thinks he's entitled to make the call, so I'll be interested to see if a Federal appeals court agrees with him.
And really, how culturally insensitive is it to use the phrase "regulate our population" when referring to someone who's part of a minority group?
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Comments
What is the big deal? I lived in Farmington, NM. In the area are at least 4 different American Indian Tribes. Every one of them believed and wore long hair on male and female members. There is also the gender card. Are girls allowed long hair? Then so should boys be. As long as it is clean and free of things like lice, what difference does it make. Even christians wore long hair at different points in history. Why make a mountain out of a molehill?
You know, I honestly don’t understand why a school, or any institution, should be able to or cares about controlling hair length outside of hair that has lice or something in it.
Sorry, I forgot something. Since when, in the United States, has any school district been allowed to “regulate our population”? Anybody wants to “regulate” me or my family will have a fight on their hands. I did not spend 4 years of my life in the military so that any agency could “regulate” me or my family.
It blows me away that they would waste so much time and energy on a little kids hair. Come on! Aren’t there more important things in life than a random kids hair?!
re: regulating the population
it’s been creeping in for decades, but humans have an amazing ability for denial; when I was a kid we believed the line ‘a policeman is your friend”, but I can’t remember when that stopped being true; e.g. you hear about the Polish immigrant whom the cops killed at Vancouver International Airport because he didn’t speak English:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Dziekański_Taser_incident
Hair is a part of the body (dead yes, but still his). It’s gross that the school wants this boy to cut off part of his body to be a part of the population. It’s also disgusting tha the school would fight in court for the right to tell people to lop off body pieces to be in school. And suspending a kindergartener for his looks more than his deeds, that’s horrific.
I agree with all of the comments here and want to add — I’m certain that school would allow a pentacostal girl to wear her hair long. Not allowing it for this boy is discrimination both on gender and religious grounds. This is very disturbing, and the courts need to let this school district know that it does not, in fact, have the right to regulate its population!
It’s His freeking hair. Who are these people to say that the length of his hair isn’t spiritual? Considering the number of Native American’s who have long hair, I would think it’s a no-brainer that there is some spiritual connection.
Oh yea. These school people Are no-brainers.
This is a ridiculous lawsuit! I know many Native Americans who believe that their hair is part of their spirit and to cut it off is sacrilegious. To say there is no written law is just inane, as it is a popularly held custom. Schools don’t like when anyone stands out, they want all people to look the same. That’s why you can’t have mohawks or pink hair, too. This stuff just drives me crazy!
In the current economy with schools loosing so much of their funding, I have to wonder how many school supplies could have been purchased with the money spent on such an idiotic lawsuit.
I don’t understand what the big deal is! The “Big Three” don’t even agree on all of their beleifs. They all have their own texts and everything isn’t written in them. They all argue about the same “belief”. Are you going to tell me that not one adult in that school that didn’t walk around with an 80’s hair cut?
Our precious and all protective ahem “Government” has been trying to regulate us for over a century. Even some of you readers are guilty. (Remember brow beating or even vandalizing anyone who opposed Obama) you all wanted so bad you actually believed change would come in a democracy. well we have it. “change through conformity” we pissed in this bed now we sleep in it
I find it interesting that even up here in Canada, we have similar story but in this case, the teacher’s aide actually cut the boy’s hair! It also proves that this religious belief is shared by more than one aboriginal group in North America.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/05/21/thunder-bay-hair.html
Another point I’d like to make…in all the paintings/pictures of Jesus I’ve ever seen, his hair is long. Seems a bit hypocritical to me.
yea, chris!
This isn’t about government or the big three or Obama. This is about a school who is trying to control and force conformity on small children.
It does not matter if Jesus had long hair or if every male on earth has short hair. The point is that if this boy chooses to have long hair and his parents have no reservations, the he should be allowed to have his hair any way HE sees fit.
We need to teach our children that not only do they have freedom and rights, but also they do NOT need to conform to what society believes is politically correct. Shame on anyone who holds children back or forces them to conform.
Some non-Natives are so blind and ignorant that they can only take the time to look at others and not at themselves. Who are they to judge anyone. Maybe this is another attempt to make everyone like a stepford wife. This is not a communist country. I think they should spend more time on education and less time being anal.
Were the heck are those christian freedom defense groups at? If this was a little boy who was wearing braids with scriptures entwined in his hair then they would be out in full force demanding he be left alone.
I’m from Houston originally & I’ve met folks from Needville before. My old supervisor in the 1980s was from there & I’m a gay guy, and wore silk socks & she thought I was wearing panty hose to work! Everyone got a good laugh out of it. I like rural areas & think we need to get back to our agrarian & pagan roots. But this is just a simple case of violating individuality & trying to oppress individual expression, a mainstay in American culture everywhere. I’ve always felt this was truly disgusting. True freedom & independence have never been ours, and all young people should fight to wear their hair & clothes the way they see fit. Distracting, you say? Too bad. We have to enliven the true spirit of democracy & the founding fathers with a modern version of their fighting resilience. Blessed Be )0(
The thing that scares me the most: Remembering when they stole our children and put them in places like the Carlisle Indian School; one of the first things they did was cut the boys’ hair. I know there’s STILL prejudice out there, but, damn . . . . What’s next? Giving out smallpox-infected blankets again? [I know: it's "supposedly" eradicated, but only in the "wild" - there's still lab samples.]
One of the really big SCOTUS decisions about religious beliefs was Dettmer v. Landon, which established the “Sincerely Held Belief” sniff test. If a person, in this case, a youngster and his parent, sincerely believes that wearing his hair long is a form of RELIGIOUS speech, rather than merely personal preference, the school board needs to collectively and individually sit down, shut up and take a Religious Tolerance course. Tell me, would this same group pitch the same fit if a Sikh kid’s turban came untied, showing that the hair remains uncut as a matter of religious belief? Would they have the brass temerity to say the same to a young Orthodox Jewish boy for his side curls? They probably wouldn’t go after the Jewish kid, but the Native kid, the Sikh kid and the Pagan kid get harassed because, well, the school board can. Except for the Dettmer decision saying “Ummm, not if it’s a Sincerely Held Belief, you can’t!” Didn’t their darned LAWYERS look into this stuff???
Has this child’s parents considered HOMESCHOOLING? Quite frankly I wouldnt want my child subjected to this kind of schooling!
What fundamentalist controllers!
For Goddess sake can’t you just be yourself without everyone being so judgemental. If they would just leave things alone everyone would be fine.
Spellsinger, in reference to your comment about long hair and other groups, Several years ago in a large Houston school district there was a big todo about Sikh boys and their top knots and turbans. It was about the schools head lice checks, that were apparently mandated by the county health department. It was settled out of court. and so did the head lice checks unless someone has an active case. My sons have always had long hair because of our families Native American Heritage. My husband only cut his hair because while in the military it was required and a warrior does as his chief dictates but as soon as he left active duty he regrew it. This is just like the appeal said “control” and mud on the school district’s face for losing the suit.
See this is where it all starts! Who cares how long this little boys hair is?The kids are there to learn about education! If it is causing a disturbance among the children then that is maybe when the teacher could help explain to them about his native life style. We need to make our kids know at an early age that everyone is different. We arent all tall, thin, blonde hair and blue eyes. And some of us are different for certain reason. Help them to understan ehy a boy has long hair and not to understand why the adults want to make him look like everyone else! Maybe someone should of taught that to the principal when he was younger!
I’m so glad the school system I went to was quite tolerant. So long as it was not overtly distracting, or graphic/explicit clothing it was fine. Including mowhawks and any color hair.
As far as this school system is concerned, it’s none of their business. Even if it wasn’t protected by his religious beliefs, they don’t have to power to force him to get a haircut.
As far a lice checks go with the health department, if they can do a check on girls with long hair, they can check a boy with long hair.