Savannah Keesee said she could understand that there might be a problem if she’d dyed her hair purple or pink, but “it’s just red, auburn,” she told KMOV.com. Keesee, a junior at West County High School, didn’t know that this would cause such a ruckus at school on Monday.
All Savannah really wanted to do was to try something that was a little different, her mom, Sheri Keesee, told KTVI.
“We had a bunch of snow days, and did some girl stuff and dyed her hair.”
The permanent dye, made by Garnier Fructis, brightened Savannah’s red hair a little bit, but she didn’t expect it would bother the principal at West County High School.
“He goes, ‘your hair is really bright.’ I said ‘okay,’ he goes, ‘you need to call your mom and have her come pick you up,'” she says, “So I tried to go back today and he said I couldn’t stay because my hair was still the same color.'”
Auburn is a natural color, Sheri Keesee noted.
“I dyed it auburn, which is what was on the box,” she said, per Opposing Views. And auburn to me is natural, just like strawberry blonde or blonde, or black or brown.”
Savannah and her mom say they are going to appeal the principal and superintendent’s decision and take the issue to the school board, KMOV reports.
Stacy Stevens, West St. Francois County Superintendent declined to comment specifically on the situation but said the hair color policy has remained constant for decades, KTVI reports.
“We try to work with students to be fair,” he said. “We don’t want them out of school, we don’t typically have issues with this policy. I think our students and parents are accepting of it. It’s been in place a long time, and I think it’s a policy that works.”
Savannah’s mom says she would like to see the school principal focus on more important issues.
“Instead of maybe picking up on the bullying, and kids who are actually causing trouble, its hair color,” she noted, per Opposing Views, and said she hopes that Savannah can return to school with her new hair color.
