Headband– a band of cloth or some other material worn on or around your head (Merriam-Webster).

With the third week of school coming to a close and fall sports in full swing, it is hard for students not to be excited. But with every school year, issues concerning the dress code continue to be aroused, and leave students up in arms.

Headbands are small pieces of fabric that keep hair and sweat off of the face and are useful for people all over the world. Earlier this week, Senior David Lonski wore a headband to school to keep his somewhat longer hair out of his face. Hair can become an annoying distraction, especially during the warm climate offered in the fall months of the year. The student was asked to remove the headband on two separate occasions, with the outcome resulting in a prompting to the dean’s office where the headband was deemed “questionable”.

“At first I was wearing one to keep the sides of my hair down,” Lonski said. “Then I got sent to the dean’s numerous times.”

However, the reasoning behind the opinion-based rule came as a shock to many as the school deans communicated that the headband wasn’t the problem. The complication was issued because of the student wearing it; because the student was a boy.

As the news has spread throughout the student body, many are angered at the reasoning behind the ban given to the male student. The comments made were inappropriate as they acknowledged the hair piece as an accessory exclusively for females. Junior Gabriel Tijerina is quite rattled over the issue and its biased opinion.

“It infuriates me because it’s obviously not revealing in any way, not gang affiliated in any way, and only becomes a distraction when situations like this happen,” Tijerina said.

Based on the dress code rules professed by the Student Handbook, students are permitted to wear whatever they feel comfortable in, as long as it follows the proper dress codes of length, coverage and design/language. In a similar context, a student should be allowed to wear a headband as long as it is used for suitable reasons and does not display slanderous or offensive ideas.

“After being scolded for trying to look like a girl, I planned the Friday #FreeLave Day.”

In reaction to the incident, various students including the varsity soccer team, revealed their disapproval and defiance by wearing headbands throughout the school day and during practices. The determination of what is right or wrong can not be based upon gender, but upon appropriate school dress code measures. The recent incident in school has made this fact evident, as it conveyed a ban that was uncalled for, and how it affected the students of ACHS.