Schools have dress codes, and even those that don’t strictly enforce them still have certain expectations. Students must show up to class wearing respectable clothing; in most cases, the regulations are clearly outlined. However, the rising number of incidents sparked by outfit issues leaves us wondering if there’s a much bigger issue that should be addressed.
That brings us to the case of a young girl whose hair extensions got her kicked out of school. She had just returned from vacation, and the faculty reacted drastically to the situation. That’s until her dad stepped in and made them instantly regret their decision.
Back to School
The feeling of returning to school from summer break lingers with most of us for years. Besides having stories to share, returning to school meant having something exciting to show off. For most of us, it would be a great vacation souvenir, a new backpack, or a cool hairstyle that earned us some bragging points.
Faith Fennidy had several similar past experiences until one incident soured the event of rejoining her classmates. Her return to the Louisiana-based Christ, The King Parish School, was one that she would recall for years to come. Sadly, it had nothing to do with warm and fuzzy memories.
A Brother Speaking up for his Sister
A day that was supposed to set the pace for the rest of the school year ended up leaving Faith in tears. Hauled out of class for having braided extensions, her family wasn’t about to let the learning institution have their way with the unfair decision.
Seeing his sister distraught, Steven Fennidy Jr. decided to speak up for her the best way he could. He took to social media and shared a video of his sobbing sister while she packed her things to leave the school premises. Steven explained that she didn’t deserve the treatment. He wasn’t the only family member who felt that way.
A Family Affair
Faith’s aunt also spoke up about what her niece went through. Vanity Tokyo is a musician and reality TV star. Like her brother, Steaven Steven Fennidy Sr, she opened up with her millions of followers about the ordeal. Known for appearing in “Love & Hip Hop Atlanta,” she shared the video recorded by Steven saying that the incident left her niece feeling humiliated.
The post reached many people, and it also received an overwhelming amount of shares. It wasn’t long before the story went viral, and with more people joining the conversation, it wasn’t only one family that was outraged by the school’s decision.
A Shocking Revelation
Vanity Tokyo’s Twitter post explained that her niece and a group of other Black female students were pulled out of their classroom simply because they had braided extensions. Instead of possibly requesting them to undo their braids, the school settled for the worst possible action.
The learning institution decided to suspend the group of students, including Faith. The comments resounded the family’s sentiments; was the school justified in dismissing a student just because of her hairstyle? Understandably, a few commenters wondered how something so outrageous could happen in this day and age. Targeting Black female students had a more significant connotation, though.
A Simple Explanation
Steven explained that it wasn’t the first time his sister had worn extensions to school. She never had any problems with her appearance up until that moment. There was nothing unusual about his sister’s braided style; it wasn’t making any sense. Why would the school decide to single out his sister and a few other Black students on a whim?
There was a simple explanation, but still, it didn’t warrant their actions towards Faith and her classmates. Over the summer holiday, the private learning institution changed some of its policies. Worse yet, the faculty didn’t inform students or their custodians about the newly adopted rules.
A Protective Hairstyle
Besides failing to inform students about the changed rules, the faculty never detailed the consequences of violating the policies. They didn’t even discuss it with everyone concerned and simply chose to enforce the policy. Perhaps if they had received some sound input, they would have realized how the absurd policy affected a demographic of their students.
Steven explained that his sister swims regularly, and having a braided hairstyle makes her natural tresses more manageable. Braids are popular protective styling choices, and for Faith, braiding her hair helped prevent the chlorinated water from damaging her natural strands. Braids last longer, and there’s no need to worry about taming your tresses while wearing extensions.
More than Meets the Eye
Even with the school’s justification for the changed policies, the Fennidys couldn’t help but feel like there were other underlying issues. Steven explained that throughout his time in middle school and high school, he sat behind Caucasian girls who played around with their hairstyles. They would change their look several times throughout the day, and their changing looks never landed them in trouble.
The school’s principal wasn’t willing to hear them out. Steven said it only created yet another barrier when it came to admitting Black students to such institutions. He ended the video by urging viewers to share it, hoping to prevent similar injustices from happening to other people.
Rapper T.I. Chimes In
Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., better known as T.I., chimed in on the conversation. After coming across the viral video, he shared his thoughts about it with his 8M Twitter followers. The “Takers” star asked whether the learning institution had a problem with Black people’s styling choices.
His post called out the school for its deplorable character stating that the learning intuition was a disgrace. He asked if they felt their actions were a proper representation of Jesus Christ, the King, and his expectations for how we treat our children. The three-time Grammy winner further added that the school should be ashamed of its conduct.
Don’t Let Them Win
In the same Tweet, T.I. encouraged women facing similar circumstances to, above all, value their beauty. Adding, “don’t let them win,” he said that what Faith and the other students experienced was straight-up bigotry camouflaged as school policy. The “Live your Life” crooner said that people who stool to such levels are simply out to discourage your Black girls hoping that they’ll give up.
The world has ignorant and hateful people, but there are equally plenty who see the beauty and goodness in others. T.I. also reminded the affected students that they are good enough and better than anyone who tells them otherwise, and he also offered to help them in whichever way he could.
The School’s Response
With the heat intensifying, the school eventually issued a response. Their statement explained that parents were made aware of the policy changes during the summer. They added that the administration worked with the students’ custodians to ensure the rules were followed. The faculty closed their statement by saying they are committed to providing a collaborative and open environment that appreciates differences.
Faith’s family wasn’t satisfied with the school’s statement, and while acknowledging attending meetings, they never received any complaints about her uniform or policy violations before. They felt like the learning institution wasn’t willing to admit that they had possibly made a mistake and remedy their actions.
Student Handbook
The school’s student handbook outlined several restrictions under the “hairstyles” section. According to People magazine, the learning institution did not allow “unnatural” hairstyles, including wigs, extensions, and hairpieces were prohibited. The incident happened in 2018, and the 2016/17 handbook never mentioned any of the newly adopted rules.
In a statement issued to People, RaeNell Billiot Houston, the Archdiocese of New Orleans Superintendent, said that Faith had previously received complaints about not complying with the policy. According to Houston, she reportedly redid her hairstyle, but the school still didn’t approve of her short, braided look. That’s when Faith reportedly ended up getting dismissed from school, and the school had even more differing accounts.
A Different Account of Events
Houston explained that Faith wasn’t suspended or expelled but instead, the learning institution gave the Fennidys an opportunity to adhere to the rules. The statement further fueled online outrage, and more people were speaking up about what they now considered racist discrimination.
TV Personality Demetria Obilor shared a tweet saying the school’s conduct implied that being Black violated the institution’s policies. Writer Shaun King reposted Faith’s video and shared her sentiments through a tweet. She concluded that for a Catholic school, the faculty didn’t act in a Christian-like manner, and instead, they sent off an underlying message of “white supremacy.”
Going the Legal Route
The Fennidy family also wasn’t willing to let the school have the last word, and their only solution at that point was to take legal action. They initiated a suit against the learning institution for discrimination. Steven Sr. also appeared in the viral video comforting his daughter, who was beside herself after being suspended.
Steven Sr. is seen motioning to his daughter, saying there was nothing wrong with her braids. A woman is also heard in the video saying that the situation shouldn’t be happening. Montrelle Fennidy, Faith’s mother, told Nola she was looking for somewhere else to enroll her daughter.
Raising Self-Esteem
If there is one good that came out of the unpleasant incident, it’s Faith’s partnership with the Dove company. The personal care brand teamed up with her for “The Dove Self-Esteem Project.” Through their website, Dove says that the project aims at helping young people build body confidence and self-esteem.
Through self-esteem education, delivered by mentors, teachers, custodians, and youth leaders, the project has reached over 60M young people. The program provides a Confidence Kit that mentors and guardians can download from their site. Their goal is to help 250M young people build and boost positive body image by 2030.
A 6-Year-Old Turned Away From School, On His First Day
Faith’s incident happened a few days after a six-year-old boy was turned away from school because of his hairstyle. A central Florida private Christian school faced the internet’s wrath for turning away a young boy on his very first day at school. Clinton Jr. Stanley, better known to most as C.J., had dreadlocks, which was a policy violation in the learning institution.
Clinton Stanley Sr., his father, explained that his son had wanted dreadlocks since he was four years old. Seeing his godfather with locks sparked his interest, and soon enough, his folks allowed him to get the twisted strands installed.
A Dapper Kindergartener
C.J. had his dreadlocks throughout his time in kindergarten, and the young boy loved his hairdo. He had them in the summer, leading up to his graduation into the first grade. Stanley and his wife decided to transfer their son to a smaller school that had a hands-on approach to learning. Fortunately, they got a state program scholarship to help their son’s tuition.
They enrolled their son in the Book Christian Academy, with a student population of 48 and half a dozen educators. They received a copy of the faculty’s handbook, and that’s where their issue with the school started.
No Mohawks, Unnatural Designs, and Locks
One rule clearly stated that boys must have a tapered cut off the ears and collar. The school didn’t allow Mohawks, unnatural designs, colors, or locks. The problem was that the handbook was handed to them on Monday when C.J. reported for his first at the faculty.
Stanley said they wouldn’t have subjected their son to the embarrassment if they knew about the regulations beforehand. He went on Facebook Live to broadcast part of the exchange he had with the faculty members. His recorded video soon went viral and sparked outrage for what most people labeled as racism from the school.
A Reverend-run School
Reverend John Butler Book established the Book Christian Academy and opened its door in 1971. Speaking to the Washington Post, the faculty’s administrator, Sue Book, said that boys never had long strands in the school’s 47 years of existence. Rev Butler Book is quoted saying he aims to save Central Florida from suffering a poor fate.
In old TV sermons, that were posted on YouTube when the story blew up, Rev. Butler Book is heard saying that women wore dresses before they were coerced by fashion artists to start dressing like men. These statements only angered the public even more.
Keeping His Locks
Speaking to NBC-2 WESH, Rev. Butler Book said he isn’t a racist. As the story went viral and the outrage intensified, five deputy sheriffs were posted at the school to keep a watchful eye, just in case protestors decided to descend upon the learning institution.
Stanley and his wife enrolled their son at a public school after their unpleasant experience at Book Academy. According to his dad, the incident is now a distant memory for C.J. Even though the classes are crowded at his school, he gets to keep his locks, and thankfully, he didn’t miss much except for losing out on experiencing the first day of first grade.