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Going Green
Steven moved from his birthplace, Eugene Oregon, a relatively large, diversely populated city, to a small farming community in Yamhill County, Oregon when he was six years old. He had begged his parents for the “super-cool haircut” for about six months before and during the move. So, in response to his cooperation during the stress of the move to a new place, his parents caved, and let him get a mohawk. The haircut of his dreams gave him a very unique sense of style for his young age, especially in the small town he lives in, one that really set him apart from his peers. While Steven really wanted to express his sense of self, he quickly learned that his outward display of his sense of style set him apart from his peers. Steven had noticed racial diversity at a young age, as he had multiracial family members and friends as well as people in his life with physical disabilities. He grasped the concept that people were different from one another. However, the young boy had never noticed that people have diverse styles, and that his own style went against the grain in the small town. While there were numerous kids in his old school with brightly colored, oddly shaped hair, at his new school, crew cuts and naturally colored hair was the norm. He didn’t care. He pressed forward with the mohawk. His natural platinum blonde hair just wasn’t the color he had envisioned his new super-cool mohawk, so he again begged his parents, this time for a bottle of green hair dye. His parents gave in, he was overjoyed! His joyous response soon faded though, as students at his school noticed his new hair-do, parents of his peers and staff at the school expressed disapproval of his green mohawk. It didn’t take long for his teacher to call home and tell his mom that Steven’s hair was just too much for school. His teacher pleaded with his mom to bleach the color out of his hair or shave his head, but his mom refused. He had earned the privilege to wear his hair the way he wanted to and his mom thought his hair was simply an expression of his creativity. His mother’s resistance to the teachers suggestion soon led to the school principal contacting her to inform her that the boy’s hair had turned into a school wide disruption, and that if a compromise couldn’t be made that Steven would have to be excluded from attending school. The principal’s threat of expulsion made the mother bend to his demands. They agreed to let the dye fade from Stevens hair and not to stand the five inch long hair on end anymore. Steven disliked the idea of loosing the freedom to do what he wanted to with his hair. As the color faded, Steven noticed that he had new friends, and it didn’t take long for Steven to decide that he no longer wanted the mohawk. He went to his mom, and told her that he wanted to shave it off. His mom was shocked, as much as he had fought over six months to get it, he was so willing to let it go! Steven learned some valuable things over the year he had his mohawk… He learned that communities develop customs. When he lived in the city, it was no big deal to have an extreme hair style. Peers didn’t judge you for it; their parents didn’t dislike the kids with weird hair. It was so common; it was just part of the way of life. In the small town, kids were used to looking like everybody else. Nobody tried to stand out by altering their appearance, and when a kid came along who defied their norm, nobody wanted to jump at making friends with him. He also learned that his expression of self didn’t make him who he was as a person. He was the same little boy with or without the bright green mohawk, even though without it he made friends much easier. He understood that kids were more comfortable with someone who looked more like them or acted like them. While it never really bothered him that people thought he was weird because he looked different, he gained an understanding of his surroundings and how he interacted with them. He saw that he was a unique person, and he had no problem standing out in a crowd. He now understands diversity and knows that there are ways to command attention without altering your appearance. He can lead with his attitude and opinion instead of with his hair style.
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meggies |
Latest page update: made by meggies
, Mar 4 2010, 12:43 PM EST
(about this update
About This Update
a story about my son growing up.
- meggies
775 words added view changes - complete history) |
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Keyword tags:
children diversity
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | ||
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| cycledisc | Re: Going Green | 0 | Mar 6 2010, 4:43 AM EST by cycledisc | ||
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Thread started: Mar 6 2010, 4:43 AM EST
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