All-Star Hairgate 2015 - Mom Upset Daughter Is Off The Team Because She Wont Straighten Hair For Competitions

[Mom2Cheergirls]

I do not condone this Suzie mom at all. But I think some gyms and parents go nuts. We have coaches who judge and while they like a clean conformity look they don't mark down for eyeshadow and stuff like that and in turn they have a very reasonable expectation for our teams.

That said this gym told her what to do and met with her and wanted to work with her and she wanted none of it. Sometimes I swear though that some gyms make jobs like makeup moms and hair check moms etc to keep the Suzie moms busy and out of the way on comp day. That is not saying all there are also some very talented parents who help each other out. BUT you know you can see the difference at comps the ones with the crazy look in their eye running after ALL the kids with hairspray and a teasing comb or makeup brush... those are the ones I mean.

I will say when one of those make up mom's at our old gym came after my kid (who had skin issues - severe eczema) with her little bacterial laden blush brush that she had just put on every kid she could reach I looked her dead in the eye and said the coach has already approved how she looks today if you have an issue take it up with the coach but you will not touch my child. I am generally a play nice mom but I am also very direct when pushed. Mind you my kid was all of 6 back then and had blush on, had been cleared by the coach (as had most of the kids) but this momma thought the more blush the better and I was having none of her or the nasty brush she was using on everyone she could reach.

 

[getsum]

according to this more recent article, there were two more mothers of two other athletes who also had the same complaint:

11-year-old kicked off cheer team for not straightening her hair - Houston Chronicle

one chose to comply and the other made the same decision as in the mother of the original article.

 

[luv2cheer92]

My precious unicorn's hair is waist-length, naturally curly, and she has a ton of it. Her hair is not easy to straighten, and believe it or not, because it's baby-fine, it's very hard to curl! Last year, we would spend 45 minutes flat-ironing her hair, then another 2-3 hours rolling her hair in foam curlers, and then we had to wait at least 12 hours for her hair to fully dry in the curlers because of the product needed to create and hold the required look. This year, we get to use a wand, which will shave off at least an hour and a half of curling time, but we'll still need to flat iron her hair first. It's not easy, and it's definitely not fun. It is, however, entirely possible to do without causing a lot of damage. (Teasing for the poof caused more breakage than any of the damage caused by heat styling, btw.)

Frankly, I can't stand the sense of entitlement and ridiculous self-righteous indignation this mother has shared with an entire country. Furthermore, I can't stand that she's effectively teaching her young, impressionable daughter that she doesn't have to follow the rules, because it is expected that everyone else should make an exception just for her! (Not to mention that she's failing to educate her daughter on how to be a part of something bigger than herself!) But, with that said, the beautiful thing about all of this is that she doesn't have to compromise her daughter's power curls by conforming to the gym's rules - she can leave and take her lousy attitude with her.

Who's Felicia? You. Bye!

Unrelated, but I love that we are now referring to children as unicorns...... Carry on

 

[CEACheerMom]

I'm just so tired of this being a thing. This concept of being uniform with your team isn't a new one. They need to get over it.

 

[Official OWECheer]

I'm just so tired of this being a thing. This concept of being uniform with your team isn't a new one. They need to get over it.

Most parents don't have kids in performance sports/activities, so they are being butthurt instead of understanding, as if the gym asked the girl to change her ethnicity. Notice that the people that are involved in cheer, dance, gymnastics, marching band, etc. understand the need for uniformity?

 

[DaniV]

Most parents don't have kids in performance sports/activities, so they are being butthurt instead of understanding, as if the gym asked the girl to change her ethnicity. Notice that the people that are involved in cheer, dance, gymnastics, marching band, etc. understand the need for uniformity?

Especially since one of the news articles I read pointed out that the majority of the athletes on the team (probably her specific team) are white and she is the only bi-racial child. They are hyper-focusing on the hair and her ethnicity so it is sensationalized to become a racist, discriminatory thing. Obviously we know that isn't the case but no one else is listening to the other side.

I'm on another message board that has a thread going on about this and it's hundreds of comments and 50+ pages long. All they are focusing on is that the coach "compromised" by asking her relax her hair with chemicals. I've tried commenting and posting explaining how AS works where WE is coming from but they are having none of it.

 

[icame2WERQ]

Especially since one of the news articles I read pointed out that the majority of the athletes on the team (probably her specific team) are white and she is the only bi-racial child. They are hyper-focusing on the hair and her ethnicity so it is sensationalized to become a racist, discriminatory thing. Obviously we know that isn't the case but no one else is listening to the other side.

I'm on another message board that has a thread going on about this and it's hundreds of comments and 50+ pages long. All they are focusing on is that the coach "compromised" by asking her relax her hair with chemicals. I've tried commenting and posting explaining how AS works where WE is coming from but they are having none of it.

another message board? deets.

 

[Official OWECheer]

Especially since one of the news articles I read pointed out that the majority of the athletes on the team (probably her specific team) are white and she is the only bi-racial child. They are hyper-focusing on the hair and her ethnicity so it is sensationalized to become a racist, discriminatory thing. Obviously we know that isn't the case but no one else is listening to the other side.

I'm on another message board that has a thread going on about this and it's hundreds of comments and 50+ pages long. All they are focusing on is that the coach "compromised" by asking her relax her hair with chemicals. I've tried commenting and posting explaining how AS works where WE is coming from but they are having none of it.

And once again, cheer is getting bad press.

If I were the GM at WE,I would have just suggested a fake ponytail. No need for a damaging relaxer.

 

[CEACheerMom]

Removing my rant. Sorry guys the rain is getting to me. LOL

 

[Keep_Believing]

I said I wouldn't comment anymore, but WE never asked her to use a relaxer or put chemicals in her hair!!!!!! This Mom wants attention and her few minutes of fame! Ugh!

 

[Official OWECheer]

I said I wouldn't comment anymore, but WE never asked her to use a relaxer or put chemicals in her hair!!!!!! This Mom wants attention and her few minutes of fame! Ugh!

I knew it. This woman is really milking the crap out of this.

Woodlands better lawyer up and sue her crazy behind. I'm super pissed.

 

[Cheermom1969]

Looking at her picture, which I hadn't really before just now, it's exactly like my cp's. When her dries naturally, it's exactly this child's hair. And we STILL have to curl it if she wants to accomplish the big pony like my picture. And she has to use a straightener if that's what's required. And somehow she still manages to have healthy hair - she just puts in leave-in conditioner before she straightens.
Why all this drama? I know there's more to this story and honestly, that's what I'm more interested in.

 

[DaniV]

another message board? deets.

It's not a cheer-related board. My sister discovered it because it's a mom-related board with a bajillion different interest groups. This thread was part of the "Debate Team" board.

cheerleader kicked off team for curly hair - Page 41 - BabyCenter

 

[Eyes On The Prize]

I would honestly love to know how this same story would play out if it weren't a child in cheer but an adult dancer at the NYC Ballet who claimed she couldn't straighten her hair while performing in the Nutcracker and was let go. I seriously doubt people would be taking the dancers side. Since it's her costume and she's required to wear it for her performance. And she knew, going in, what was expected of her. Would people still be screaming about acceptance and self image?

The fact that cheer is so wildly misunderstood by the general public doesn't help.

Poor WE tho #istandwithWE

 

[DaniV]

This is exactly what they don't need to be dealing with right now as we head in to comp season. :(