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Matter of fact, I will probably deliver better in my old jeans than a suit because I am most comfortable and feel more at ease in them.
So why should we care what type of hairstyle our people have either in the work and mostly in school? How does my attire or my look in general determine my productivity?
Shouldn’t we should only be concerned about helping students get good grades? Which will ultimately see them getting into good varsities hopefully with great scholarships?
I find it petty that instead of coming up with policies on how schools can help students get good grades in class, we have school governing bodies that have meetings to decide on how pupils should look - probably over some tea and biscuits probably from the school funds.
One of the famous quotes by Steve Biko reads: "The basic tenet of black consciousness is that the black man must reject all value systems that seek to make him a foreigner in the country of his birth and reduce his basic human dignity.”
Our children, our sisters are being made foreigners on their own land because of their hair. They are being forced to look a certain way in exchange for good education.
Their minds are slowly being polarised by notions that the way they look is not ‘professional’ or ‘acceptable'. And that what they perceive as beautiful is actually a distraction.
Who could’ve thought that over 20 years into our democracy we would witness girls, as young as 13 years-old standing up to their seniors against blatant racism.
Who would’ve thought that we would be having such conversations today?
Since 1994, South Africa has had five ministers of education:
- Sibusiso Bhengu between 1994 and 1999 under the leadership of the late president Nelson Mandela.
- Sibusiso Bhengu between 1994 and 1999 under the leadership of the late president Nelson Mandela.
- Kader Asmal between 2004 and 2008 under president Thabo Mbeki.
- Naledi Pandor for one year, from 2008 till 2009 and Angie Motshekga as well Blade Nzimande who are ministers of basic and higher education respectively.
The people mentioned above are academics of note and they have arguably improved our education, although today pupils are told that they only have to get 30% to pass although no varsity will admit a pupil with 30%. But that’s topic for some other time.
Are we saying none of these academics, our ministers of education thought to establish a policy that will guide schools on ‘hair’?
Or did they not think that our black sisters will, at some point, get into ‘white schools’ where there will be a clear distinction in terms of hair?
Because at this moment, it seems like every school has its own policy on hair and what is acceptable. Some schools do not accept braids - as if the long strings will be used to choke fellow pupils, some schools do not accept afros - for a vague reasoning that the hair obscures others kids as if they can’t simply move to the front. I mean if I am watching a show and I am short, I will not ask the tall person to crouch, I will simply move.
Pupils are told to relax their hair. Who said a relaxed hair is better and acceptable? Huh? What if I want to have braids? What if I want to cut it all off? What if I want a long Brazilian weave? What if I want cornrows? Why should the schools care what I have on my head? Am I not there to fill the inside of my head with useful information for a better future and not the top?
What happened at the Pretoria school is the most heartbreaking thing ever. Parents pay so much money only for their kids to be reminded every single day that they are black and unwanted.
There’s a lot of things we should be arguing over as per our education system but looks shouldn’t form part of those arguments or discussions rather.
We should be talking about how we are going to make sure that these students with lovely afros get into varsities. We should be discussing how, like Norway in Europe, we can achieve free higher education in the country.
Not the `Ghaadamn hair!
