Kayiu Dig It? Colored Hair, Don’t Care

KAYIU WONG
Opinions Editor

Something I feel we often take for granted is the power of hairstyles in society. Now before you wonder why I am devoting my column entirely to the strands that grow from the follicles of our skin, think about it — we see hair trends all over social media, we use hairstyles from the past to identify certain cultures and historical eras, and most importantly, we style our hair to reflect our identity.

One large controversy over hair involves how it is regulated in dress codes. Many schools across the country ban their students from having non-natural colored hair. Thus, a plethora of students have been suspended from their schools for changing their hair color. Protest on social media over how ridiculous it is for hair dye to be a dress code violation particularly erupted last March when Savannah Keesee, a high school junior in St. Francois County, Missouri was sent home by the principal when she showed up to class with redder hair than usual. She got in trouble for simply brightening her natural red, auburn hair.

The argument that non-natural, bright hair will distract students is fatuous and ultimately unfair. I understand when schools have to prohibit certain things such as gang insignias, sports logos or displays of profanity on clothes, but hair color is neither inappropriate nor distracting. It should not need to be addressed in school dress codes at all.

Hair will eternally be a popular trend in society and it will always make each person unique. How you do your hair, how you prefer it to look like and what color you dye it represents your personality and a sense of individuality that should not infringed upon. Dress codes that do not restrict students from expressing themselves: I dig it.