Olympic High School in Kibera has been in the headline for the part of the week as the principal sent a student home for having dreadlocks in school.With the wave of African women keeping natural hair the debate has been intense with many feeling that the school should let the girl be.
The latest to indulge into the heated debate are the Atheists in Kenya who now wants the principal of Olympic High School to resign with immediate effect.
Their command came after the student’s father, Julius Wambua Mwendwa, notifying the school that his daughter belongs to the Rastafarian Society of Kenya.
According to Atheists in Kenya (AIK), “This is blatant religious discrimination which
AIK President Harrison Mumia called for the resignation of the school’s principal for showing lack of “leadership at time when the Ministry of Education is rolling out the Competency Based Curriculum.” goes against Article 27 of our Constitution. We demand that Olympic Secondary School immediately re-admit the student.”
Mr Mumia stated that no part of the body holds symbolic powers like hair.
“The culture of hair belongs to all humans and throughout history; humans have used hair to communicate social, sexual, religious and political messages.”
The school kicked out the Form One student despite her hiding her dreadlocks. She was further told that the school’s rules require her to shave her long dreadlocked hair if she wanted to continue learning in the institution she had no option but to cut it.
The father, through counsel Wambui Shadrack sued the Board of Governors of Olympic High School in Kibra for sending home the newly admitted Form One girl ordering that she shaves her dreadlocks to be accepted in the school.
The parent states that his, wife and their five children are members of the Rastafarian Society of Kenya as well as ardent followers of the Rastafarian religion