HOUSTON - Houston Texans' wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is speaking out in support of a Barbers Hill senior who is in the middle of a controversy surrounding his dreadlocks.
De'Andre Arnold has been growing his dreadlocks in a traditional Trinidadian style for eight years. Just a few months before he's due to graduate, De'Andre has been found in violation of hair length in the dress code.
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Barbers Hill ISD says teen’s dreadlocks are against dress code, threatens in-school suspension
Deandre Arnold, 18, has been a student at Barbers Hill ISD his entire life and has been growing his dreadlocks since he was 10 years old with no issues. For some reason back in December, Deandre was told to get rid of the dreads or spend the rest of the year in in-school suspension, which would mean he couldn't walk the graduation stage with the rest of his classmates in the spring. If you support Deandre Arnold, call Barbers Hill ISD to voice your opinion on Tuesday after Martin Luther King Jr. Day at 281-576-2221.
Hopkins, who is known to have dreadlocks, tweeted De'Andre telling him to never cut his locks.
De'Andre and his family are continuing to fight the district because they say the dress code is a violation of his civil right to wear dreadlocks.
READ MORE: Barbers Hill ISD meets following hair controversy
Barbers Hill ISD issued this statement Tuesday:
"Barbers Hill ISD has a long-standing dress code, but we absolutely allow dreadlocks. What we do not allow is any action that circumvents or violates the provision regarding hair length. The student in question was NEVER forbidden from attending school. The U.S. Constitution allows a school board the right to implement local community expectations, and Barbers Hill ISD’s continual academic and extra-curricular successes are a direct result of our communities’ high expectations."