Recently, there’s been commotion about haircuts in Bahamian schools. Growing up in Nassau and having to deal with this firsthand, I would like to share my opinion on the matter.
For those who don’t know, I’ll give a little background. Schools in The Bahamas, private as well as government (public) schools, enforce a strict British colonial-style dress code. Everyone wears uniform. Which isn’t an issue, I actually think mine was quite stylish.
And the young men must have their hair groomed in a very low cut, a “schoolboy haircut,” the subject of this article. No dreadlocks, no twists, no afro, just a short haircut.
Most young men in The Bahamas are of the negro race; this is important in understanding the types of hairstyles applicable.
There are a few special cases for people whose religion affects their hair (Mostly Rastafarians), but they have to keep their hair covered. Which I don’t think is fair or makes any sense.
I have always had a problem with this, especially when I was younger, and inwardly knew that it just didn’t make any sense.
I had and have just one question that no one has been able to answer, and I feel cannot reasonably answer. Why? Why the stringent rules on hair?
I couldn’t press the question when I was younger, but I’m older now and I can.
Throughout the years, I have received several responses to my question.
But before going into my argument, I must make one statement clear early in the article, before everyone jumps to conclusions. I think that short and neat are two completely different things. Not synonymous at all. Of course, I don’t think that young men’s hair should be unkempt; I don’t think anyone’s hair should be ungroomed. What I believe is that as long as the hair is neat and well-groomed (which I realise is semi-subjective), it should be allowed.
I’m also not a lawless guy. I know that rules are important, especially in a school setting, but what I’m saying is that the current rules are unfair and outdated.
Now onto the arguments I’ve heard:
I. The “hair is a distraction”. That does not make any sense. Female students have longer hair and it’s not “distracting.” I don’t think that anyone faints in class when they see two-strand twists.
II. “The long hair looks ungroomed.” That’s just not true. There are lots of longer, neat hairstyles. And if this were the case, wouldn’t all the female students be bald?
III. “That’s how it’s always been, so that’s how it should be.” Let me give you this scenario: if a man came and slapped you in the face right now, then did it the next day and the day after that, is he now justified because it is tradition? No. Nothing should ever be done simply out of tradition; sense is sense, nonsense is nonsense, no matter if it’s 1000 years old or 1 second. And these rules don’t make sense.
Where did this originate?
I’ve done some research as to how this came about. And I have an idea in my mind. Of course, correct me if I’m wrong and tell me what you think in the comment section.
During British colonial rule, short-hair policies were mainly forced on Black boys as a tool of control. Colonial schools used grooming to “civilise” and discipline them, teaching that African hair was wrong and European neatness was the standard. White boys weren’t held to the same rules — it was racial conditioning disguised as discipline. Those ideas stuck, and even today, natural Black hairstyles are still judged through that old colonial lens.
You might be saying, “Nico, that’s the most ChatGPT answer,” that’s because it is. But I can corroborate that that is exactly how it was when I was in grade school.
One other thing that I must add is that to me, it just was not fair. The female students had such liberty, relatively speaking, not just in length, but they could also have fake hair/extensions. Male students had none. This is an injustice!
Solution
My propsoition:
Gradually, increase the number of approved hairstyles that young men can wear to school. Focusing more on the neatness/grooming rather than the length/style itself.
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Again, if you disagree or agree with what I’m saying, let me know in the comment section.
I’m Nico Miller. I sometimes do articles like these on the things that are on my mind, and I usually do engineering/more technical things. So if you’re interested in any of those, subscribe to my blog at nicomiller.com or follow me wherever you’re seeing this.
