Black student says deputies escorted him out of graduation for wearing symbol of African heritage

Nyree Holmes was escorted off the stage of Sleep Train Arena Tuesday by deputies before he could officially receive his high school diploma.

His crime: He refused to remove a kente cloth from atop his graduation robes.

The 18-year-old student from Cosumnes Oaks High School in Elk Grove said he wanted to feel more connected to his ancestors, so he decided to wear the kente cloth – a piece of fabric that is worn during important occasions by certain cultures in Africa. Holmes identified it on his Twitter as a “cultural cloth from Ghana.”

As a “descendant of slaves, I have no firm connection to my roots in Africa,” Holmes told the website the Atlanta Black Star.

School officials did not take kindly to his decision. Holmes said one tried to convince him to take the kente cloth off, and when Homes refused, he said the official called the sheriff’s office to have him escorted out.

About 500 graduating seniors were at the 3:30 p.m. ceremony, along with hundreds of family and friends.

Holmes chronicled the event on his Twitter and Facebook accounts, drawing dozens of comments and national Internet attention. By Thursday the story was trending on Facebook.

“We regret how things were handled,” said Xanthi Pinkerton, Elk Grove Unified spokeswoman. Asked to explain, she said that it was unfortunate that he was escorted out. “We would have preferred that the student would have complied. We wouldn’t have even gone here with that. It would have been nice not to have the image of a police escort.”

She said the student “was given a heads up” about the school policy. “Despite multiple requests the student didn’t do what we asked,” she said.

The incident is likely to cause the district to revise its policy on graduation to make it more clear, she said.

Precious Lao, 18, learned about the incident with her coworker from Facebook. The new graduates both work at Rockin’ Jump, a trampoline park in Elk Grove, Loa said.

“The schools don’t let us wear anything but the cords and the pins we earn from school,” said Lao, who also graduated Tuesday. Lao attended Monterey Trail High School in Elk Grove. “They don’t say why.”

Holmes plans to study film at California State University, Fullerton, in the fall, according to his Facebook page. The Atlanta Black Star also identified him as a merit scholar.

Lao, who is Hmong, was surprised to hear about the dress code during a meeting about graduation attended by students and their parents. “My mom was disappointed,” she said. “I’m sure my mom would have given me some traditional jewelry to wear. ... I was disappointed and shocked to learn that we couldn’t wear anything to represent who we are.”

Others at the meeting were upset about the rule as well. “I did hear sort of a mumbling and an ‘aah’ when the vice principal told us you can only wear your cap and gown, and cord and pins that you earned,” Lao said.

Lao doesn’t agree with the decision to remove Holmes from the commencement ceremony, but she doesn’t think the decision was made because he is African American.

“I think the district and the school are trying to protect students from representing gangs or other things that may distract from the ceremony,” she said. “But the school, in turn, shouldn’t have gone to the length of escorting him out in front of the entire school.”

Novella Coleman, attorney for the ACLU of Northern California, said a problem can exist if the school district allows students to wear any accoutrements not associated with the school, but then disallows another form of personal expression, such as a kente cloth.

Every graduation season controversy erupts over whether Native American students can wear eagle feathers during commencement ceremonies. Last year Native American students at high schools in Grand Forks, North Dakota, fought back against school district policy banning personal additions to graduation attire. The students wanted to wear eagle feathers, considered to be sacred in Native American culture. They started a petition on Change.org and started a Twitter campaign using the hashtag #LetTheFeathersFly.

After a meeting between Native American parents and school administrators the ban was lifted.

This story was originally published May 27, 2016 at 5:55 AM with the headline "Black student says deputies escorted him out of graduation for wearing symbol of African heritage."