A person should not be defined by what they do but rather be known their potential and work ethic. A person should not be subjected to assimilating to a social norm that cannot apply to everyone.
Sadly, this wasn’t the case for 12-year-old Vanessa Vandyke in Central Florida. Miss Vandyke attends Faith Christian Academy. School officials ostracized the 12 year-old for the way she “wore her hair.” She was told to either change her hair or be expelled for a week from the Academy.  While it is true that the academy has a dress code that states “Hair must be a natural color and must not be a distraction” her natural hair was ruled unfit.
Word got out about the child’s dilemma and is circulating social media. This is discrimination at its finest and should not be tolerated in any setting. After hearing about this story I took it upon myself to research professional and unprofessional hairstyles. I was completely astonished by the results. Natural hair is the face of unprofessionalism and creates more racial separation.
On google images as pictured below the images do not only differ from hairstyle, but textures, skin tone, facial expressions, etc.
The possible expelling of this child could impact her education and future. Stories have also popped up in other countries and the discrimination is unbearable. I stand for natural hair. Natural hairstyles are associated more with African American women and comparisons like this makes it seem like African American women are inadequate for the business world and standards of beauty.  I’m sure there have been more unreported stories like Vanessa Vandyke’s in the workplace and communities we live in. A person should not be defined by their shape, color, or form let alone their hair.