Recently an Ohio school released a letter to parents, detailing the types of hair styles, clothing styles and other forms of self-expression that would no longer be acceptable at school. On that list were popular Black hair style like, “Afro puffs, braided and small twisted braids, with or without rubber bands.” After getting some public shine on the popular blog, Black Girl Long Hair and receiving backlash, the school issued an apology.
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“It had nothing to do with young ladies, young African-American ladies. It was really more so addressing young African-American men here at this school. We want to maintain a certain type of college prep culture here, and we just want the young men to be well-groomed.” –James Knight, an advisory board member, told The Huffington Post in an exclusive interview.
Well-groomed?! So, when a little Black girl wants to wear her hair the way it naturally grows from her scalp, it’s seen as not groomed? This of course isn’t the first time we’ve heard this ridiculous claim, but for it to come at a school level is extremely ridiculous. These are the years that little girls need to value who they are for what they have. And if schools are keeping them from being authentically themselves, how will they mature and feel confident in who they are?
This lame apology has gotten my wheels turning. Public apologies seem to be an on-going trend. From cheaters like Tiger Woods to racists like Paula Deen or Mel Gibson–the words “I’m sorry” have never seemed so disingenuous. “I is what I is;” come on Paula Deen, really!? Check out five of the worst celebrity apologies:
I’ve lost count of the amount of apologies Mel Gibson has had to issue. First, he said “I’m sorry” for is anti-Semitic comments, then he had to apologize to his ex-girlfriend and the mother of his child for an assault that damaged her teeth and blackened her eyes. There are not enough apologies in the world for this man.
Remember when Chris Brown appeared on “Good Morning America” with Robin Roberts and as a result to her questioning of his legal issues, he threw a chair through the window? Yeah, first of all, many of us still hadn’t forgiven him about getting physical with his superstar ex-girlfriend, Rihanna, but he certainly needed to beg for forgiveness for losing it on national television. So he did what any other young pop star would do; Breezy went on 106th & Park and blamed the show for exploiting him.
Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake’s SuperBowl half time performance may have been one of the most memorable performances ever! Justin reached up and ripped of Janet’s costume, revealing a nipple piercing and *gasp* a nipple! Janet and Justin caught so much flack for the risque performance, but when Justin went to apologize, he threw Janet under the bus. The “Suit & Tie” singer claimed that he didn’t know about the stunt.
Instead of joining Janet in refusing to adhere to CBS demands that they publicly apologize at the Grammy Awards, Justin showed up to the show and apologized AGAIN! Way to throw Janet under the bus!
We all cringed when a drunken Kanye stormed the stage at the MTV VMA’s, stealing one of Taylor Swift’s biggest career-making moments. He snatched the mic, claimed that he’d let her finish before telling the entire audience that Beyonce deserved it more.
Kanye never apologized formally, instead he took to his blog and wrote, “I feel like Ben Stiller in “Meet the Parents” when he messed up everything and Robert De Niro asked him to leave.” He then went on to claim he helped launch Taylor’s career. What a cocky you-know-what.
Akon’s video that simulated rape on a minor in Trinidad placed the ex-con in hot water. Instead of issuing an official apology, Akon released a song called “Sorry, Blame it on Me.”
Check Out The Lame Apology Attempt Here:
Isaiah Washington’s gay slur against his “Grey’s Anatomy” costar T. R. Knight was immediately reprimanded. He was let go and the tried to offer an apology, but then he repeated the slur in the pressroom a the Golden Globes. Well, that was smart. ABC gave him the boot, permanently.
