Kanaan VyShonne Barton says he’s following all other school rules but shouldn’t have to cut his hair: ‘My locs represent strength’

A Black student at a Mormon university in Hawaii said he has been told by staff to cut his shoulder-length hair because it does not adhere to school policies, he said.

Kanaan VyShonne Barton, a student at Brigham Young University-Hawaii, told the Salt Lake Tribune he has been engaged in a battle with the school since September over the length of his hair, which he has refused to cut.

The university requires students to follow an “honor code”, which states hair should be “neatly trimmed”, although the code has no official guidance on length.

  • @[email protected]
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    3 months ago

    Apparently, I have more than you do. It’s not hard to leave the Mormon church. As someone with family members in an actual cult, I find it very stupid to conflate the two. People leave that church every day with no more consequences than an extra measure of condescension from neighbors.

    Not one penny less, no property taken. No threat to life. You water down the term “cult” by being so reactive about it.

    • @ElderWendigo
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      13 months ago

      Maybe they can be easier for adults without familial attachment to leave. But we’re talking about a child here trying to build a life, that is an immeasurably more complex and difficult task. Don’t water down the organized abuse by claiming it’s not a cult.

      • @[email protected]
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        3 months ago

        This is an adult at university. One that is benefitting from crazy low subsidized tuition and signed a contract to cut his hair in order to get it. Hardly a child. And the church flat out said that parents should not punish children who don’t choose to believe in their faith. There are plenty of problems with that church, making up stuff just distracts from the actual issues.