Twelve-year-old Jasmine Parker walked into Lincoln Middle School in Atlanta that crisp October morning with pride, her hair meticulously braided and adorned with colorful beads—symbols of her cultural heritage and family tradition. At a predominantly white school, her hairstyle was more than fashion; it was a statement of identity and confidence. But in Ms. Miller’s seventh-grade English class, what should have been a celebration of culture became a moment of humiliation. The teacher, perceiving the braids and beads as a distraction, forcibly cut and shaved Jasmine’s hair in front of the class, leaving the girl traumatized and her classmates in shock.
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