Selective Dresscode Enforcement Brings Trouble
Student’s refusal to adjust cap leads to arrest, controversy
Updated March 16, 2004: School system investigating school official and police officer actions.
Updated March 29, 2004: Students, National Action Network, march in protest of ‘racist’ Saguaro policies
Marlon Morgan is a junior at Saguaro High School. His mother is a teacher and he was nominated for Youth of the Year last year. He’s also black.
Recently, Marlon was arrested for wearing his baseball cap sideways.
Marlon was sitting in the school cafeteria when Saguaro security guards asked him to turn his hat around and he refused saying he felt singled out.
It is against school policy to wear hats sideways because it can be a sign of disrespect for authority, the police report said, but Marlon, who is Black, said that the rule is enforced selectively. According to a police report, he pointed to several White students whose hats were on sideways.
Two assistant principals and a Scottsdale police officer were called in and Marlon still refused to flip his hat around. He was suspended on the spot and immediately arrested for trespassing.
Morgan was taken to police headquarters, where he was fingerprinted, photographed and kept in a jail cell for several hours. He was held on suspicion of disorderly conduct, failure to obey a police officer, trespassing and interfering or disrupting an educational institution.
Marlon’s behavior was inappropriate and definitely disrespectful but did a sideways hat warrant being taken out of school in handcuffs? The school district is standing behind the guards and principals saying that they acted appropriately. If this is what they view as an appropriate response then they aren’t entitled to the students’ respect at all.
UPDATE:
Suspension of student over cap prompts investigation
The Scottsdale Unified School District is investigating whether school officials and a police officer acted appropriately when a 17-year-old was arrested at school after he refused to turn his sideways baseball hat around.
…
“I think it’s important that we look into this and find out what we need to know and move forward,” District Spokesman Tom Herrmann said.
Even with the district investigating the school doesn’t seem to be exactly bending over backwards to get the situation resolved amicably.
The teen’s mother, Bobbie Morgan, said she talked to school officials Monday in hopes of getting her son back in school immediately. She said she was told he would have to spend half his lunch hour cleaning the cafeteria with rubber gloves for 10 days.
UPDATE:
Students protest school ‘racism’ over cap incident at Saguaro High
Chants of “no more racism in the schools” rang outside Saguaro High School on Friday afternoon as a group of 22 high school students held signs and peacefully paced back and forth in front of the school.
Jarrett Maupin, 16, a junior from St. Mary’s High School in Phoenix, organized the protest to show support for [Marlon Morgan].
…
Saguaro High School is in need of changes, said Maupin, who is president of the National Action Network at St. Mary’s. “Racism knows no borders,” he said, holding a justice sign.
…
Maupin said he would be back every day until the school’s administration implemented changes that addressed racism at the school.
NewsTour 2004: a kinder, gentler nation
It’s time for our first installment of NewsTour 2004™. Today’s installment: A Kinder, Gentler Nation. ~~~~ Killed with iPod Why’d you even get pregnant in the first place then? Stop or I’ll shoot! Erm, well, at least the kid was…
The Messed-Up World We Live In
I fear for our future, mainly because of stories like this. I was in a foul mood earlier today, over…
We are inculcating in our children through these ridiculous “zero-tolerance” procedures and absolute disregard and disrespect for authority, law and order. You can’t even parody this stuff, because as extreme as you can imagine, examples in reality already abound.
Keep up the good work, your stories frustrate the rip out of me, but it reminds me why I homeschool!
Regarding the boy in Scottsdale, AZ, who was expelled for wearing his hat sideways: Of course he should have been expelled, along with the other hat-wearing students, not because the hat was crooked but because he was wearing a hat at all. This was in a dining-room and gentlement do not wear hats in a dining-room, especially when people of the opposite sex are present. This is a rule commonly disregarded by people nowadays because a whole generation has been badly brought up. His teachers and the principal and the whole ignorant educational establishment are the real culprits. Stephen Ryan, W.W.II combat-disabled vet and retired college professor.
okay, this is the height of ridiculousness. so white students can wear their hats the way they want but black students cant??? and if i had the kid mentioning other students and was a security guard or whatever, i would go to them and enforce the rules for them, too. yes, it is racism, and blatent racism at that.
I’m sorry Stephen, but that’s rediculous. These are kids in a cafeteria. Kids wear caps. Caps are not bad. A cafeteria is far different from a dining-room and even then I would only agree with your policy were it a formal gathering. This was a place where highschool students gathered to eat… It was a social environment. Not some prep or boarding school.
Wearing ball caps, whether forward, sideways, or backwards is generally not a sign of disrespect. If you think so then you’re reading too much into it. Fads happen all the time. They come. They go. They come back. I actually think wearing caps sideways looks rediculous, but that does not mean I have anything against someone choosing to do that.
Did the reporter of the story ask whether the school’s original concerns were about potential gang activity, a problem in Arizona. The school scecurtiy officer might not have known about the kids apparent stellar reputation.
The hat turned sideways–certain gang members regularly adjust their clothing (hat, pant leg) to favor one side or the other to make a sort of fassion statement of gang allegiance. Could the police or school report this intent while the investigation was ongoing?
There was no mention of any suspected gang affiliation or that the hat rule had anything to do with gang symbolism. The student handbook isn’t available on the school website so I wasn’t able to check it directly but the article specifies that the rule is “because it can be a sign of disrespect for authority”.
Marlon was confronted by two of the Vice Principals and I have to assume that at least one of them would be familiar with the history of such a stand-out student. At a minimum they would both have known that he hadn’t been in trouble previously.
I seriously doubt that suspected gang behavior had anything to do with this incident.
Carnival of the Vanities #79
Well folks, the Carnival has rolled into town and I’m your sweaty, pot-bellied carny plying the wares of the blogosphere with the electronic barking and begging.
The basic gist, for my regular readers, is that bloggers will submit entries that they…
Some people are beginning to think these policies are put in place to condition the population (the inmates of public schools) to obey any dictate no matter how ridiculous, hoping to cow them into believing that they have no rights whatsover and that government can control their lives. Kids today must feel that they’re passing through the looking glass when they step through the school door.
While some may fall victim to that way of thinking, I think public schools are eventually going to shoot themselves in the foot, because there are so many more educational options (homeschooling, on-line courses, co-op schools run by parents) out there today, that public schools really aren’t needed.
I can’t imagine victims of these policies ever wanting to send their future children to a public school. And I can’t imagine the friends of students or family members who are also affected by these policies psychologically ever wanting to send their kids to schools with these policies. How can people respect these idiotic school officials?
TOO MANY STUPID PEOPLE HAVE TOO MUCH POWER TO DESTROY YOUR CHILD’S LIFE FOREVER!
Kids these days do notice that schools are trying to bully them into believing that they have no freedom. If you haven’t noticed, they do whatever they can to find a loophole in any rule. I do agree that public schools are no longer needed. I live in a very small town and it used to be quite peaceful, but now there are first graders beating on kindergardners. This is very wrong, and I thought that adults were supposed to be teaching us not to fight. But kids are learning it in their schools now. Favoritism has also become a large problem in many schools and same with racism. I myself am not racism, but I know a lot of people who are. What do they see that makes white people so much better than black people? The only difference is the color of our skin. Does this mean that we should put everyone into groups? I mean, if someone decides to wear black and carry a chain does that make them a bad person? People look how they want to look and they wear what they want to wear. People shouldn’t judge others on the way they look if they don’t want to be judged on how they look.
NewsTour 2004™: a kinder, gentler nation
It’s time for our first installment of NewsTour 2004™. Today’s installment: A Kinder, Gentler Nation. ~~~~ Killed with iPod Why’d you even get pregnant in the first place then? Stop or I’ll shoot! Erm, well, at least the kid was…
it seems to me that some officials of arizona are really living in prehistoric times, the statement made that the youth was being disrespectful to police and authority, by wearing the cap to the side. most youth wear their caps to the side white,chinese,indian,africans,etc. it is the cool look, arizona almost sounds like south africa! I personally big up the youth for standing up to the bull…., mind you I dont agree with children being disrespectful,however children are people too. remember the word people, where do caucasions get the ideal that they are superior??? superior to what? color of skin? that is so foolish, first of all a indian man will not blister in the sun like a caucasion, a oriental man can bend and squat for hours in his older days, a african mans back and legs stay strong even in his older days, on the other hand a caucasion will burn in the sun blister and die remember their travel to the west at first? a caucasion’s bones get dry and brittle in their older years they become weak. also caucasions’ develope a bone disorder in their older years that cause them to walk bent over with a nice big hump. an african women will cook for her family a wholesome meal YES! her family can afford to go out and eat. Black women will cook for her children.that makes them strong. caucasion’s will take their family out to eat in the resturant,YES! she can afford to stay home and feed her family properly. unwholesome food weakens the body. african families generally grow their children in the churches and they are not taught to dislike a person because God made them different, instead africans teach their children that man was made equal in the image of God. Unlike our beloved caucasion family who teaches their children even in church to hate, hate,hate. How can any race of people feel superior over another after coming to where people were already living in peace and harmony with nature,strangers are now invading the land, killing the animals, after being excepted with love. the majority of indigenous people welcomed vistors with open mind,hands, and heart. to be tricked and murdered, now to be controlled. how dare the caucasion to demand any kind of respect from any one, respect is earned. Your laws have taken away the right for a parent to chastise or spank their children. No
God in the school, homosexuality, ever so acceptabile, seventeen year olds can have abortion with out a parents permission, the system is set up that a child can do what ever him/her please. How ever if a child has his hat turned to the side then that child is being disrespectful, TO WHOM!!!
You authorities really surprise me in arizona.What is needed is some one that will bring in outsiders with power for people of color because the caucasions’ behavior is totally unexceptable, especially directed toward children this the united states or american in 2005. We all must realize that we are one people,when it comes down to natural catastrophy such as earthquake,tsunami,tidal waves fifty feet tall,does it really matter what color another person is who is helping you save one of your love ones? when 9/11 hit the good old U S did it matter who was black or yellow or red if he or she was saving your back side from the next ton of falling bricks? CAUCASIONS no one is in control we are all one people to the Omni Present we all call God. Man Know Thy Self. I want the officials to know that there are also african americans, Indians, Mexicans and other people of color that you love to pick on that are in Iraq dying for your freedom to live in america todays new found Roman Empire.Universal law,WHAT A MAN SOW SO SHALL HE REAP. Look at all thoes KKK’s being jailed for the crimes they commite back in the day, even some of the Nazi have had to face their punishment. BE CAREFUL..My caucasion brothers and sisters.
Respectfully
Sista Dedee
Wow. Debra, that is the largest spew of generalization and racism I’ve seen in quite a while.
As a recent combat vet (somolia/D.S./bosnia/and recently returned from deployment for O.I.F.as a combat-disabled vet Arizona Army National Guard, Military Police Officer, and a professional Certified Protection Officer(21 years)/ Security Consultant with the city of Phoenix, I find the actions of the security guards discusting.
“Marlon was sitting in the school cafeteria when Saguaro security guards asked him to turn his hat around and he refused saying he felt singled out. ”
ARE THE SECURITY GUARDS AUTHORIZED TO INFORCE DRESS CODES ON BEHALF OF THE SCHOOL? AND IF SO, THE SECURITY GUARDS WOULD HAVE HAD THE DUTY TO INFORCE THE POLICY WITH ALL OF THE STUDENTS AT THE SAME TIME.
“It is against school policy to wear hats sideways because it can be a sign of disrespect for authority, the police report said, ”
ROLLING YOUR EYES CAN ALSO BE A SIGN, I DARE THEM TO ARREST ANYONE FOR THAT. IT CAN ALSO BE A F-A-S-H-I-O-N STATEMENT, AND IT CAN ALSO BE AN EXAMPLE OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, AND EXTREAMLY COMMON WAY TO WEAR YOUR HAT IN THIS DAY AND AGE.
but Marlon, who is Black, said that the rule is enforced selectively. According to a police report, he pointed to several White students whose hats were on sideways.”
IF THIS STATEMENT IS IN THE POLICE REPORT, THEN I SMELL A LAWSUIT.
“Two assistant principals and a Scottsdale police officer were called in and Marlon still refused to flip his hat around. He was suspended on the spot and immediately arrested for trespassing.”
LAST I CHECKED, TRESSPASSING REQUIRED THAT YOU BE WARNED FIRST. ON TOP OF THIS THE PARENTS SHOULD HAVE BEEN CONTACTED, AND THE STUDENT THEN REMANDED TO THE PRINCIPLES OFFICE TIL SUCH TIME AS THE PARENTS BE REACHED AND TRANPORTATION AND OR SUPERVISION BE OBTAINED. UNLESS THE ARREST WAS THE MOTIVE,OR TURNING THE CHILD FREE TO RUN THE STREETS WITHOUT SUPERVISON, AND PROTECTION.
He was held on suspicion of disorderly conduct, failure to obey a police officer, trespassing and interfering or disrupting an educational institution.
DISORDERLY CONDUCT? WOW! THAT IS THE BIGGEST STRETCH IVE HEARD IN A LONG TIME, FAILURE TO OBEY A POLICE OFFICER? INTERFERING OR DISRUPTING? HE WAS IN THE CAFETERIA FOR GODS SAKES, AND TRY THIS ONE ON FOR SIZE, HOW ABOUT BREACH OF PEACE, AS THERE DOESNT SEEM TO BE ANY MENTION OF ANY PROBLEMS PRIOR TO THE SECURITY GUARDS HURRASSMENT. THE PROBLEM WITH LOWER SECURITY GUARDS IS THE SAME FOR MANY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, THEY ARE FORCED TO HAVE SO MANY CONTACTS PER HOUR QUOTA SUCH AS AZ D.P.S DOES, AND THAT MEANS THEY MUST FIND OR MAKE A REASION TO PULL OVER SOMEONE TO MAKE THAT CONTACT. POLICE HAD TO GET AWAY FROM ARREST QUOTAS, AS FAR AS TITLE GOES, NOW THEY CALL IT POLICE CONTACTS QUOTA, AND ARRESTS USUALLY RESULT FROM IT. IN SUCH CASE, SECURITY GUARDS ARE FORCED TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING, ESPECIALLY IN PEACEFUL TIMES, THEREBY MESSING WITH THE HOMIOSTASIS OF THE MOMENT.
TO ME, IT JUST SOUNDS LIKE THE USUAL POWER TRIPS THAT GO ON IN SCHOOLS, AND WITH THE ADDITION OF SECURITY GUARDS AND POLICE ON PROPERTY, THE CRUELTY JUST GETS WORSE.
“Of course he should have been expelled, along with the other hat-wearing students, not because the hat was crooked but because he was wearing a hat at all. This was in a dining-room and gentlement do not wear hats in a dining-room, especially when people of the opposite sex are present.Posted by Stephen Ryan at March 15, 2004 07:28 PM
”
THE CHILD SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN SUSPENDED FOR THIS! I REMEMBER BACK IN THE DAY SUSPENSIONS WERE FOR SERIOUS STUFF.
THINGS LIKE FIGHTING WOULD GET YOU DETENTION UNLESS SOMEONE WAS SERIOUSLY HURT, BACK-TALKING, DRESS-CODE VIOLATIONS, ETC…DETENTION. BUT THIS GOT THE CHILD JAIL-TIME AND A POLICE RECORD, AND AS FAR AS PUBLIC STANDARDS GOES, WE LIVE IN 2006, OUR STANDARDS REFLECT OUR STANDARDS, AND THAT IS WHAT WE NEED TO JUDGE BY, IN THE OLD DAYS, IT WAS STILL OK TO BEAT WOMAN, AND YOU COULD GET AWAY WITH KILLING YOUR WIFE AND KIDS, THESE RADICAL, OLD, OUTDATED, ARCHAIC IDEOLOGIES ARE JUST THAT.
AS IT IS, I AM AFRAID OF MY CHILDREN ATTENDING SCHOOLS, PUBLIC OR PRIVATE, AS MEETING WITH THE TEACHERS TENDS TO WORRY ME AS FAR AS THERE STABILITY GOES.
FOR INSTANCE, MY NEPHEW WAS HURRASSED CONSTANTLY BY HIS ELEMENTARY TEACHER THAT TAUGHT AT THE SCHOOL ON THUNDERBIRD BETWEEN 40TH ST AND 32ND ST, THE TEACHER INSISTED ON TALKING TO AND TEACHING HIM ONLY IN SPANISH (HE DOES NOT KNOW A LICK OF SPANISH!) AS THE TEACHER INSISTED HE IS SPANISH/MEXICAN/ OF SOME LATIN DECENT BASED ON HIS LAST NAME THAT HIS MOTHER TOOK ON WHEN SHE GOT WITH THE GENTLEMAN SHE IS WITH NOW SOMETIME AFTER MY NEPHEWS FATHER DIED FIGHTING A FIRE(HE WAS A FIREMAN).
UNFORTUNANTLY FOR HER LACK OF KNOWLEDGE OF GERMAN/SCOTTISH SURNAMES , MY NEPHEWS GRADES FELL TWO GRADES BEHIND! FORTUNANTLY HE NOW ATTENDS SHCOOL IN ANOTHER STATE, AND IS IMPROVING GREATLY NOW THAT TEACHERS ARNT SHOVING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE DOWN HIS NECK.
I don’t know why people feel they need to make this stuff up. If you are in America, and not going to a foreign language school, teachers dont teach in other languages!!
“Hats, caps and other head coverings shall not be worn indoors”
How the heck can a school district enforce this kind of a rule? I looked up Hat etiquette and it says in public places, including indoors its not necessary to remove your hat. last time I checked a public school is a public place….I’m confused…any input? is it disrespect to the teacher somehow? or just another way to force you to bow to them?