From left to right: sophomore Birukti Tsige, sophomore Cedrina Missamou and junior Ruthie Bilimo wearing headwraps. Photo taken by Tenzin Dorjee.
Malden High school is the most diverse school in the state of Massachusetts. The students and faculty pride themselves in being exposed and extremely acceptant to cultures of all kinds. With that being said, back in October, a student wearing a headwrap, a cultural tradition in her family, was told that she was not allowed to wear her headwrap.
The student wore her headwrap, and was told by a faculty member that she was not to wear it, or she would face suspension. Naturally, in a school that prides itself in being culturally diverse, this caused some outrage among the students, which led to a group of girls organizing a protest in which they all wore their head wraps to school, proudly representing their culture.
Around the halls of Malden High, dozens of girls were seen wearing their headwraps. Many of the girls’ parents were called and informed that their daughters were not following dress code. The school handbook strictly states that head wraps may not be worn except for religious purposes, which in the eyes of the stated administrator, was not the case for these girls.
When asked, Malden High student Birukti Tsige gave some insight. “Head wraps have been a style worn by many black girls for generations,” she stated, “In Malden High, most teachers don’t say anything because they understand that it has a meaning. It’s not a cap or a hat; it’s more than that. But one day, a group of girls came to school wearing a full head wrap and were told to take it off or face suspension.”
MHS principal, Ted Lombardi was a key part in this change. He stated that “[f]rom the moment they came in to talk to [him that he] thought this was a great opportunity to make a positive change. To [him], this was an area of the dress code that was unaddressed, so the chance was there for [them] to work together as a school community to make the change [they] saw fit. Ultimately [they] offered supports to the girls but they really did the work themselves and left everybody at the school committee meeting in awe of what thoughtful, intelligent students [there are] at Malden High.”
After being advised to address the School Committee, Ruthie Bilmo, Birukti Tsige, and Cedrina Missamou gathered to speak to the School Committee and the Superintendent. Tsige stated that “[they] were a little nervous but this was very important to [them] and [they] weren’t backing down.” She continued to state her amazement at how quickly the School Committee changed the rule, which happened right in front of them, rather than months later, as the girls had expected.
The girls’ accomplishment made it to Wicked Local, WCVB, and other local news channels. Tsige said addressing the School Committee and seeing the rule changed was an incredible experience for her, and that she truly felt what it was like to make a change. Students are now allowed to wear headwraps in Malden High because these students decided to take a stand.
