A white cop was put on desk duty and ordered to stay off the street, because he came to work with braided hair. Although “dozens” of black cops in Philadelphia wear cornrows on the street while on duty, Officer Thomas Strain apparently looked ridiculous enough to warrant action.
It should go without saying that if police departments allow black male officers to wear their hair in braids on the street, pulling Officer Strain because he wore braids on the street is racially discriminatory. (Source)
It’s unknown whether the officers allowed to wear braids are females, who police departments give more leeway when it comes to hairstyles.
An unnamed officer said, “It’s absolutely discriminatory. Strain’s cornrows ‘do was neat. It was above his collar. It’s not like he shaved a Nazi sign or something anti-black or anti-Hispanic on his head. It’s just cornrows. I don’t know what the problem is.”
I suspect the department thought black residents and black fellow officers would consider Strain’s cornrows offensive, a sort of “That’s our hairstyle. Are you making fun of us?” attitude.
Look to the Constitution! If blacks are allowed to look ridiculous and unprofessional on the job, whites should be allowed to look ridiculous and unprofessional on the job.
It’s a different matter altogether, however, if “dozens” of black male cops are wearing braids while undercover to better “infiltrate” target groups, and Strain wasn’t undercover.
Clarification: If it’s not clear in my post, I’ll make it clear now: I don’t like cornrows on men, especially for the workplace. On women…whatever.
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