Whilst Nigerians and Kenyans continued in their tug of war over Zukerberg, the weekend saw a lot more drama when somewhere in a South African secondary school, the students were grappling with something more serious- racism over hair.

Specifically the Afro hair, a natural hair texture of certain populations in Africa. This varies from Kinky to coily, curly, etc.

These girls who led #StopRacismAtPretoriaGirls are EVERYTHING. They are literally the future. pic.twitter.com/YLjWYlkXcT

— Britni Danielle (@BritniDWrites) September 2, 2016

Now, the school’s code of conduct rules does not specifically mention Afro hair as being against the rules, but it might as well have. Instead, these sets of rules were more inclined with ‘how not to have wear an Afro hair’.

The policy on appearance begins by stipulating that “all hair must be brushed. If hair is long enough to be tied back, it must be tied back neatly in a ponytail, no lower than the nape of the neck, with a navy blue elastic.”

“Ponytails may not be visible from the front. No crocodile, banana, or other fancy clips are allowed. All hair must be off the face and not be in the eyes. Hair buns must be tight with no loose hair and have to be worn in the neck, and not on top of the head. The hair may not cover elastic.”

You see, the thing about Afro hair is that for the most part, it loves to show itself. The phrase “Hear I am, hear me roar” is an appropriate description for African hair.

The primary hair types- kinky, coily and curly texture of African hair- does not exactly lend itself to being ‘kept out of sight’. Even mixed hair textures cannot be slapped down, except with a straightener or texturizer.

The policy goes on to state that “Students are not allowed to dye their hair, or wear shaved heads, and although “cornrows, natural dreadlocks and singles/braids (with or without extensions) are allowed” the hair must be “a maximum of 10mm in diameter.

Singles and braids “must be the same length and be the natural color of the girl’s hair,” and that any braids shorter than collar length “must be kept off the face with a plain navy or tortoise shell alive band.”

Longer braids must be tied back and students aren’t allowed to wear beads or any hair decorations. And “no patterned cornrows” are permitted. “Cornrows must run parallel from each other from the forehead to the nape of the neck,” the policy states.

It’s easier to explain this second paragraph with this BBC video.

Wait a minute, how is a student supposed to remember all these rules?

• Wear in the neck, not top of the head
• Tie back in a ponytail, but pony tail should not be visible from the front
• Corn rows & dreadlocks must be 10mm in diametre
• No patterned corn rows either
• And by all means, you must never shave your head.

This is the exact reason Zulaikha Patel, the 13-year-old pictured above, changed schools three times. These tedious rules above pretty much cancels out many natural hair styles: threading, Afro, puffs, twists, kinky hairstyles etc. And one is not even allowed to fall back on a good old shave.

African hair obviously can’t win with these rules. What rankles is the idea that African natural hair is not considered neat. Which in itself perpetuates the notion to these teenagers that European hair is the hair to have because it is prettier, sleeker, can be patted down neatly as  well as put in a ponytail. This is without any doubt, all forms of wrong.

Who made these rules, anyways? Why the move to put African hair in a box?

We therefore applaud the courage of Zulaikha and her friends in bringing this issue to the fore. South African twitter went agog with #StopRacismatPretoriaGirlsHigh .

Following the furore, the school’s hair policy is currently suspended pending an investigation. This policy prompted another school Johannesburg’s Parktown High School for Girls, to amend its hair policy as a “proactive” move to avoid “subtle or structural racism.”

The move was to ensure the schools pupils felt “comfortable with what they consider to be their natural hair,” the school said in a Facebook post.

Another elite school, St. Michael’s in Bloemfontein, which carried out tests of neatness on black girls’ hair, by making sure their hair fit into a swimming cap or school, has now promised to reconsider their policy.

Folks, hair has become political.