Photo: Knotty Boy Facebook submission
“There were no black people in my son’s elementary school, and he got dreads.
I told him if the kids teased him, to go to the office and tell the nurse he was sick so he could phone me to come pick him up. Well, the whole day went by, I got no phone call, so when he got home I asked him how his day went. He said everyone made fun of him, called him a girl. And then he said to me, “It’s ok, though, Mom. I love them. I don’t care how much they (the kids) bug me.” “Did you want me to take them out, DJ?” “Nope.”
Self worth at 7 yrs old is a beautiful thing. He’s kept them ever since. And he’s 22 now.”
From Jennifer in Vancouver, commenting on a Knotty Boy Facebook post about dreadlock discrimination in schools. A little inspiration to keep fighting the good fight, from the strength and self-awareness of a 7 year old. Clearly his mama raised this cutie well!
Got a story about overcoming discrimination against dreadlocks? Email your own photos and stories to blog@knottyboy.com and we’ll share them with the rest of the Knotty family, to help affirm the decisions we’ve made or are thinking of making. We are knot alone!