Bad hair day for pupils

[caption id="attachment_41912" align="alignright" width="405"] TIME WASTED: Morningside pupils sent home because of hairstyles included, from left, Zinthe Methe, 17, Sibongile Joni, 16, Asandiswa Mvandala, 16, Pumelela Maswana, 16, and Anathi Yose, 17. Picture: MIKE HOLMES[/caption]

A LARGE group of Nelson Mandela Bay pupils were barred from school yesterday and ordered not to return until they had shaved off their "fancy" holiday hairstyles.

The 60 pupils from Morningside High School in Kabega Park, with hairstyles ranging from plaits to weaves and Afros, insist they should be allowed to put in extensions because they also want to have long hair like their white and coloured friends.

After being locked out of school, many spent the day at a park because they did not have transport home. While some Bay schools do not have a problem with extensions and hair colour, one principal said "Teko Modise", "Will Smith" and other fad hairstyles were always an issue at schools, especially after the holidays.

The pupils, who wanted to remain anonymous, said they felt their rights were being violated and that Xhosa pupils were being treated unfairly.

"They even chased us away from the school's gate. All our braids and cornrows are neatly tied. Even boys are not allowed to have Afros – they want them to have short hair. We find that unfair because coloureds are allowed to have long hair," a 15-year-old Grade 9 pupil said. - Yoliswa Sobuwa and Nomazima Nkosi