African-American Teen Forced to Cut Hair Before School Wrestling Match
The parents of Andrew Johnson, the wrestler who was forced to cut his dreadlocks before a wrestling match, have spoken out in a statement for the first time since the incident.
Charles and Rosa Johnson released a statement through their attorney, Dominic A. Speziali, calling the referee’s conduct “more egregious as additional information comes to light.”
“The blame here rests primarily with the referee,” Speziali says in the statement, “and those that permitted him to continue in that role despite clear evidence of what should be a disqualifying race-related transgression.”
The NFHS wrestling handbook says that a wrestler’s hair can’t fall below the top of their shirt collar in the back, below his earlobes on the side or below their eyebrows.
New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Executive Director Larry White says the referee isn’t moderating any matches until the incident has been thoroughly investigated.
Do you think the referee was being biased or was he just doing his job?
