Qld school temporarily agrees it won’t unenroll prep boy over ‘cultural’ long hair
A stoush over the length of a student’s hair has ended up before a tribunal – and it could be months before he knows if he’ll be expelled. VOTE IN OUR POLL
Education
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THE mother of a Caboolture preppy risking expulsion from a strict Christian school if he does not have his traditional long hair snipped says she is disappointed the matter has ended up before a tribunal.
Wendy Taniela has been warring with Australian Christian College Moreton after it insisted she cut her son Cyrus’s hair earlier this year.
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When she refused, the school told her the prep student would be unenrolled unless he adhered to the school rules and the college would not make an exception to its hard line hair policy.
Cyrus is of Cook Islands and Niuean heritage and his family had planned since his birth to cut his hair when he turns seven.
The family are also devout Christians and have another child and several family members attending the school.
Cyrus wears his hair tied back and braided into a neat bun at school and has been attending during the COVID-19 crisis as his parents are essential workers.
“It’s his rite of passage as a little boy becoming a man,” Mrs Taniela said of the haircutting ceremony.
“I want to teach him about his bloodline and to understand who he is and why he has brown skin and not everyone does.”
After the school threatened to expel the boy, the family lodged a complaint to the Human Rights Commission, which could not be resolved.
The matter has now been referred to Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
“I am really upset that we haven’t come to an agreement that would suit both parties,” Mrs Taniela told The Courier-Mail.
“For me, I just want my son to be able to have the education we, as his parents, never had and for him to be immersed in his faith at school but understand his culture.
“With everything going on in the world at the moment with COVID, which is a matter of life or death, I am just really disappointed we couldn’t agree.”
Mrs Taniela has now been forced into a David and Goliath-style battle against the school and will face a QCAT hearing over the matter in July.
The family were yesterday given a reprieve by the Queensland tribunal after the Moreton college agreed not to expel the child on the basis of his hair until after QCAT had heard the case.
During yesterday‘s hearing, the tribunal heard the matter should be resolved as soon as possible in order to give both parties certainty moving into the new school term.
The Queensland Anti-Discrimination Act prevents discrimination on the basis of race at all schools, private or otherwise.
Mrs Taniela said her son has not been treated any differently as a result of what is happening and she never wanted to “drag the school into this’’, but was simply never told about the rules when Cyrus was enrolled.
“They only ever said hair was to be above the shoulder and neat and tidy, they never mentioned length,” she said.
“I just want them to accept that people of different nationalities are going to walk through those school gates.”
QCAT will decide Cyrus’ fate in July, before the start of semester two.
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