Texas Representative Sheila Jackson Lee is rallying behind a teen who has spent the school year in isolation at an alternative learning facility after being banned from class due to his hairstyle.

Darryl George was placed on in-school suspension on Aug. 31 at Barbers Hill High School in Mont Belvieu after being told his locs, which are pulled into a neat twisted updo, violated the dress code policy due to their length.

Last week, a judge ruled in favor of Barbers Hill Independent School District when it was decided that the 18-year-old’s punishment was not a violation of the CROWN Act, which was signed into law by Governor Gregg Abbott in May 2023. The act prohibits race-based hair discrimination. The judge’s ruling comes after the school argued that the length of the junior’s locs was not protected by the act.

“The CROWN Act does not give students unlimited self-expression,” said Superintendent Greg Poole in a written statement that heralds the judge’s statement as validation of their actions against George. “High expectations have helped make Barbers Hill ISD a state leader in all things and high school standards benefit all ethnicities… Falsely claiming racism is worse than racism and undermines efforts to address actions that violate constitutionally protected rights,” he added, according to the Houston Chronicle.

At a Friday (Feb. 23) press conference, Lee called upon the Department of Education to investigate the matter as a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects students from various forms of discrimination, including race and ethnic characteristics. She has also spoken with members of Congress and notified the Department of Justice of her legal pursuit. “I never thought I’d be standing here in 2024 to fight this fight,” she said.

“The opinion to say that a teenage boy has to be isolated in a cubicle or a class and cannot interact [with other students] because he has [locs] that are way up on his head, not doing anything to disturb the respect he would have for his fellow students, for his teachers, for his activities that are needed. There’s nothing,” added the longtime congresswoman.

“I am stunned, literally stunned, of a fight that I have to make for young Mr. George to be treated like a decent human being and be able to receive the education that the tax dollars of his parents and his family pay for every single day,” she continued. Lee shared that part of her efforts to end the student's ban from class includes reintroducing the CROWN Act with an amendment protecting a person’s hair length.