October 6, 2010
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Nose Ring in School
A 14-year-old girl has been suspended for wearing a nose ring that is she describes as an “article of faith.”
The girl and her mother belong to “Church of Body Modification.” The school says that the nose ring violates the dress code. Here is the link: Link
Should the girl be allowed to wear her nose ring in school?
Comments (105)
Who cares about that. I want to know more about this religion. I want to use that excuse too!
I mean, it’s like. “Sorry, I can’t do my homework. Because I am Jedi.”
Never heard of it…sounds like a joke, although I’m not joking on it when I say that. Must do research now. Bye.
@Starshine_Faerie - http://www.uscobm.com
I don’t know what to think of this “religion”…I’m not trying to be judgmental or anything, but it sure is weird.
Church of Body Modification?
It was stated that because her religion doesn’t FORCE her to wear the jewelry it is not a breach of her freedom of religion. I am inclined to agree with that decision.
Yes. Üb
@CecilliaMarie - Weird, maybe. And strange. And yet in some way it seems like they might possibly be the most tolerant church out there.
She should be able to wear the nose ring with or without her beliefs in the Church of Body Modification (it felt so weird typing that). Really, is this all the school has to worry about? Nose rings?
@RazielV - Yup, I agree as well
Who cares.
It’s dress code. She can wait until college like the rest of us did. Or there were tons of girls that wore clear rings until the weekend.
@Starshine_Faerie - best reply so far.
what a mockery. but WHO is being mocked? the school, the “church” or the kid or the parent actually gutsy enough to admit she belongs to such a group….
I used the excuse that God gave Rebecca (my namesake!) a gold nosering as a wedding gift in the Bible. HA!
Haha, what a made up “church” name THAT is! LO But I don’t see the harm in the tiny little nose stud she has there, other than I think it would hurt like hell to have it done!
Kathi
@LyricallyCharged - Seriously. Your tax dollars at work…
Everybody disagrees with some aspect of a dress code, but we suck it up because we need the education or the job. The girl and her mother need to suck it up.
I looked a bit at the Church’s website – they claim to meet federal requirements for being classified as a church – from the FAQ page: “Is the Church real?
Usually, when people talk about a church being real or “Federally recognized,” they are talking about two things – incorporation as a non-profit entity doing business within a particular state, and a tax-exempt status from the IRS as a non-profit entity. In both of these ways, yes, the Church is real.” So – first step taken care of – it’s a legitimate church.
If we’re going to talk legalities – there may actually be a case… despite how ridiculous it all seems. She would have to prove active and established membership in the church, of course – meaning, “we’ve been members for a while, not just because I got in trouble at school”… If it can be indeed proven that her nose ring can be considered part of her chosen religious attire, she may have cause to go to court.
But – RazielV is right – she would have to prove some kind of religious requirement… and nothng on the website specifies that certain types of modifications are required of members of the church. She could just as well pierce something that no one can see, and call it good.
Personally – I think she just really wants to wear her little nose stud to school.
If it’s against the school dress code then I don’t think she has any grounds to complain.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
First amendment, baby.
If they allow anyone else to disobey the dress code for religious reasons, then yes.
@RazielV - Forget my comment, that’s a good point that I didn’t think of.
School administrations and educators have more important issues to address than a nose ring. As a boomer, I have a whole lot of empathy for my parents who had a problem with my long hair. Wonder how kids a couple generations from now will shock the status quo…
Don’t see what the big deal is, honestly. Though I find sticking jewelry in your snot locker a little disgusting.
@LyricallyCharged - Certain dress codes exist for a reason. It’s not like they’re forcing them into dresses, or uniforms. Asking for no facial piercings isn’t exactly a HUGE to-do.
Umm…WHY would any parent let their 14 year old get their nose pierced? That’s crazy.
I have a nose ring……and I will not let my daughters get theirs until they are 18. I waited until I was 18 and no harm was done.
@thepictureofme - Nudity.
@RazielV - wonder what kind of picture Dan will have for us to comment on if that is the case!
@thepictureofme - No idea, but it excites me.
@RazielV - Dress codes are put into place to limit distractions. Exactly how much distraction is her nose stud causing? (Well, before the news circuit caught whiff of this, haha.)
@Starshine_Faerie - I tried that once. My teacher was like “sorry I can’t pass you, because I am Sith”.
*Smacks head on wall* What is THIS even an issues???? Kids are being Bullied enough, that some of them are taking their own lives!!!!
Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think a 14 year old has any business having a nose ring.
@LyricallyCharged - You’re only somewhat correct. There are many pros and cons to having a dress code in any school. If you do some research on the topic, you’ll find a plethora of good reasons to have one, and bad reasons to have one. For example:
Pros:
-Eliminates opportunities for the ridicule of less popular or less fortunate students based on attire.
-Decreases theft and violence – even life-threatening situations- among students over
designer clothing or expensive sneakers.
-Helping prevent gang members from wearing gang colors and insignia at school.
-Instilling students with discipline.
-Helping parents and students resist peer pressure.
-Helping students concentrate on their school work.
-Helping school officials recognize intruders who come to school
So honestly I fail to see your argument as very strong, or your question to be totally relevant to the situation. My response, though, would be that it may not be a distraction (though some could argue it could be), but it could lead to her being mugged and it stolen, or possibly be used to bully her based on her class, or a plethora of other possibilities.
It is not as if i care about this other than
She needs to be slapped for pulling that stupid “church of the holy nose stud’ crap
Dress code is dress code.
Nah, just at church.
The church sounds like bullshit, but that little nose ring is barely noticeable. Why do school have to be such dicks about that? If it was something extreme it’d be different. I have a nose ring like that, and so do MANY other people. The nose ring is very acceptable these days especially when they are small and classy. This just bugs me. Can’t the school just let her be?
Wow. If she got suspended for THAT…I would have been screwed. But, even when I went to a school with only like 80 people in my junior class, no one said anything about my piercings.
What has the world come to? In my day I went to school with both my nostrils pierced and chains running to my ears! That was 15 years ago! How did we go backwards?
If you are going to make up your own religion, you can make up your own school and attend that as well.
I’ve never heard of a church dedicated to body modification. Unless that nose ring inhibits the student academically, I don’t see what all the fuss is about. It’s 2010, nose piercings have been in school since *I* was in high school and that was over a decade ago.
I belong to the Church of whatever the hell I feel like doing.
I’d say unbelievable but what a retarded society we live in.
Another great run for the education system. I suppose asking her to take it out or talking to her mother about their religion was out of the question. Suspended though, that’s what gets me. You’re wearing a piece of metal in your nose so we’re kicking you out of school for a while. Real smart.
A lot of school dress codes have some really ridiculous rules. At my old high school we weren’t allowed to wear hats. They would literally take the hat off your head. We weren’t even allowed to wear them in the winter (I mean, it’s Vegas winter so it’s not that cold, but even on the occasions it DID snow we couldn’t wear hats.) At my old middle school, flip flops weren’t allowed.
I agree that it’s a silly rule — do they even have a legitimate reason for having it? — but the thing is, you deal with the dress code. It’s not like you’re uninformed of it. They run you through it at the beginning of each year without fail.
i don’t see the problem with teens having piercings. how does it affect them learning to have a stud in their nose or lip or whatever. i always wanted my nose and my lip pierced but couldn’t have it in school so i got it when i got out. now i just have to worry about working since most jobs don’t accept it. which is also so stupid. this isn’t the same world that my parents or grandparents grew up in. back in their day maybe piercings, tattos, and wild hair colors wasn’t something that people liked but in todays socity it’s a way for people to express themselfs. all through our child hood adults told us to be who we are and don’t be afriad to express yourself but when we do we get suspended from school for example. i think there are more important things that the school system needs to worry about. such as fighting and bullying and teachers sleeping with students. instead of worrying about or hair color, piercings, or what we’re wearing worry about what your teaching us. if kids want to get their nose pierced then why the hell not? it’s not your nose thats getting a needle stuck through it.
i mean, it’s so small…doesn’t seem like it should be a big deal.
but technically she should be allowed to wear it even if the church doesn’t force her to. the catholic church doesn’t force anyone to wear a cross, but people still choose to as a way of remaining close to their faith. and her faith just happens to include “body modification.”to each his own.
Anyone should be able to pierce anything they like without it being a big deal… but…. church of body modification? lol Okay,
@RazielV - Those are arguments for uniforms, which is a specific dress code. The dress codes I’m assuming this girl had to deal with, and the public schools I went to had to deal with, didn’t require uniforms but restricted the kinds of clothing you could wear. Some examples of these rules, from my high school –
– No tank tops or spaghetti straps. Period.
– No hats. Ever. If someone wore a hat, it was typically taken away.
– Hems on skirts and shorts must be down to at least fingertip length. (This rule was typically ignored at my school). Also, no sagging of the pants (which was also widely ignored).
– No flip flops. (Enforced in middle school, but not high school).
– No clothing advertising drugs or alcohol.
etc
Her school probably had rules like these that just included one about no facial piercings.
@thepsychoticraccoon - -nods- Fair enough. My high school had the same rules. Kids today act like any rule is suddenly an attack on their beliefs and “who they are”. I’ve yet to meet someone in middle or high school who knows exactly “who they are” and what they want to do with their life. It’s worse than when I was in school, and even THAT was bad.
Now with any kind of religion being made, you can almost claim ANY rule violates your religious beliefs. It’s ridiculous and out of hand.
I did that as my current event for class 3 weeks ago. Old news.
@RazielV - Definitely agree. I had absolutely no trouble dressing like a normal human being, and I never got “dress coded.” My school also had the no-facial-piercings rule I think, but it either wasn’t enforced or I never heard about any issues. Guys could walk around with ear gauges big enough to fit a soda can through and there was never an issue.
Like I said in an earlier comment, it’s not like these rules are kept secret. You’re told at the beginning of the school year, and they’re often posted around campus. It’s your decision whether to follow the dress code or not.
Screw the nose ring I always say.
Fashion is as fashon does. If people would quit making such a big issue of it it might just go away on its own. I think there has to be rules on safety, so if it was a super large “ring” that could be caught on something and tear her nose and it does, the school should definately not be held responsible. My husband is not allowed to wear his wedding ring at work. The blades he works with as a slitter could cut off a hand in almost a milisecond so I aprove. She has had her 15 minutes of fame, lets move on.
i love my nose ring. so much. haha. but schools make you aware of the dress code before. they don’t just spring it on you. though suspension is too harsh for this case. she should’ve been told to take it out, or gotten a detention at the VERY most, and only if it was a repeat offense.
then again, that may be the norm for that church/school. i don’t know anything about them so i have no grounds to say.
Yes, she should. I think her excuse is lame though.
14 is bit young for a body piercing, but aside from possibility of infection there’s nothing inherently wrong with them. So unless she’s being obnoxious about it there’s no reason she should be barred from wearing it.
But I’m too scared to mutilate my body to even get my ears pierced once . . .
if they have a problem with the dress code, maybe she should go to a different school or be home schooled
The school should change its dress code. Simple as that.
And to the people saying, “Well, she’ll just have to put up with the same rules the rest of us did”…
Tradition is not an argument.
No dress code violation!
Sigh, dress code is dress code, just take it out while you’re in school. Easy solution.
she can keep it in and just put a band-aid over it, like we used to have to do at circuit city or panera. no big.
dress codes are dress codes. there will always be places that require a certain way to dress.
I hate stupid rules, but until they’e changed, they should be enforced.
Facial piercings weren’t allowed when I was in junior high and I remember the only kid who had one getting up in front of the school to debate with the principal on his rights to self expression. He lost the debate but earned my respect.
As for the story… it appears to be a public high school… let her wear her nose ring. big deal. Teenagers have the ability to do worse than just wear a piece of jewelry. The school officials need to be a bit more discerning when they choose their battles.
religion or not, the nose piercing isn’t hurting anyone. I hate how schools get all uppity over stuff like hair color, piercings, dress code, etc. when there is so much violence in schools! I mean, yeah I don’t wanna see a girl or guy in school with their pants sagging down or anything hanging out or whatever. But other than that, who cares? Its not harming anybody!!
I mean, schools need to focus on education…not just passing certain exams like in Arizona the AIMS test (What a joke!)…and a lot of schools cut programs that are beneficial like music or art or p.e. or whatever. And again, the violence in school? Really… a nose ring is the last thing on my mind if I’m worried about getting hurt in school.
I think this church is completely fucking ridiculous… but if it’s a legit church and she can prove herself an active member… doesn’t the school have no choice but to let her wear it?
Actually this “church” of theirs does not meet the official definition of a Church, perhaps the government has a different definition on it. If they want to call it a religion or spirituality then so be it, no worries.
I think she should just be a “big girl” and not wear it to class. The rules are the rules (right or wrong) and as long as they are the same for everyone then thats that. Making a big deal about it just seems silly, she is not being oppressed.
@Starshine_Faerie - Dude, I wonder whether that would work.
I saw a post about this a good while ago by BaldMike2004. I thought it addressed the issue well.
dude, like.. in my high school, theres always that one girl who has a nose peircing in our “cliques”. my best friend has one, before she had the actual thing, she’d buy those glitter things you stick on cell phones and she wore them around.
My friend in high school and junior high had a nose ring throughout. No one gave her complaint..so why should it matter? And my friend’s nose ring was a little stud as well..
That’s kind of a ridiculous dress code imho.
sorry to say it, but this is old news
Others have already said it, but it bears repeating: This is OLD news, Danny boy.
That piercing isn’t getting her laid.
eh… I don’t really know where I stand on this one. My school always said NO head coverings, hats, etc, but this didn’t extend to the Muslims because in their faith they had to remain covered…BUT (and this is what my Islamic friend told me), they were not required to wear them until after they had begun menustration; however, the school didn’t say “Oh, well, since your faith doesn’t REQUIRE it, you can’t wear yours yet. Wait ’til you meet Aunt Flo!”
If I had to side, I’d say they should just let her wear it. Prolly their best chance to save face at this point, anyway.
I had similar rules in my second high school. My senior year was devoted to students being written up and sent home because of dress code enforcement than actually teaching us the work…It was always for small things too. I think she should wear a clear one if she needs to wear one at all but I didnt get my piercings until I was almost 20 and had thought about modifying my body by myself and what it would mean/how it could hinder my career.
I think the problem now-days is no one wants to be under any kind of authority and rules. I believe that is why there is so many problems in our society. What’s wrong with having a few rules and “laws” to follow? I think it makes us stronger people and have stronger character. So your a child, you have school dress codes that ask you to be some certain way. Just do it. Doesn’t mean your weak or something.
sounds like a real neat church
So what is the big deal? In any student handbook it CLEARLY states that students are not to have any type of piercings other than ear. She is clearly in the wrong not the school. Be a fucking adult admit you’re wrong, learn from you’re mistake and move on. An “article of Faith” sounds like a BS reason. She deserved to be suspended. Hell I may just start a Church of Automotive Modification so I can justify my automotive mods! (ei. illegal window tint)
@breezybell I agree with you, as far as legality goes i’m willing to bet that a judge would see this case as frivolous and or ridiculious and throw it out. However if the judge did rule in her favor everyone who wants to wear booger bling in school would jump aboard the “article of faith” train.
@Starshine_Faerie - That made me giggle.
This is just stupid it’s not even that distracting. If it’s that bad then girls shouldn’t be able to wear earrings because those can get kind of “crazy.” When I was in HS (two years ago) they forced us to wear long sleeves all year round if we had any tats showing. Now, they don’t even care because around here everyone is tatted everywhere.
If they have shit fits over stupid shit like that then they can change it themselves lol. Maybe private school is better for them to be running.
@Still_groovy - i have mine done. hurt a pinch, and that was it
i think it’s dumb. my job and i always argued over my nose ring. it’s tiny and some of my coworkers who have been working with me for the last 2+ years (before i quit) didn’t even notice it. it’s silly. my customers always asked about it and it was a great source of conversation. no one ever complained. i think it’s silly, it doesn’t take away from anything… idk, maybe i think this way cus i’m 18 with a nose ring… whatever.
@Starshine_Faerie - Rotflmao!
“There’s a time and place for everything.”
Church of body modification? Give me a break. I’m pierced & tattooed and am all for that kind of stuff but dress codes are dress codes. When I go to places like court, job interviews and things like that, I put in retainers. It’s really pretty simple.
Her excuse for the nose ring is bullshit, but so is the dress code. I want to know specifically how a nose ring will disrupt the student body so much that they’ll learn less than the little they’re learning now.
No she shouldn`t be allowed.It`s school not a place to be styling like that that shows no sign of discipline and school suppose to teach u that.So I would say she is going to a great decent school if she got suspended..I understand that yeah its a free world to do whatever.but if she has nose ring then the other girls can wear mini skirts then.and th efellas earrings and hats.then what would u say about that a school with kids in mini skirts dudes with hats n earrings.tatoos showing all over..spaghetti straps to wear then all that would be kool just for a simple nose ring….Suspended yes hope not for too long..Discipline is heavily needed.
Dress codes are stupid.
@storyofmylife87 - psht… I wouldn’t want my kid to get pierced at 14 either really, possibly when they start highschool but not when in middle school and 14. haha but seriously now a days kids are getting things pierced earlier and earlier. My 15 year old cousin had her NIPPLES pierced at 14. wtfff????
I don’t even get why piercings are frowned upon by schools. I mean is it stopping the child from learning?
She should have just said she was Hindu. A lot of Hindi women have nose rings vital to their culture/faith yada yada yada. Oh but this is in North Carolina. The only religious things anyone at my schools were allowed to wear were crosses and shit like that. Wearing Pagan jewelry? Too bad your faith is worthless to them.
@milfncookies - lol
When I was in high school, we always said if any of us got our noses pierced, we would claim “religious reasons” if the school got after us.
I am grateful that she is dressed conservatively. A little dot in the nose is an infinitesimal issue. They must have bigger fish to fry.
@Starshine_Faerie - I should use that excuse now
Hopefully, someone is a huge fan and will understand ;]
She should be aloud to wear it. I don’t see what the big deal is about piercings these days.
I don’t see why it’s the school’s business to decide what body piercing the girl has. She’s 14. If she got it with parental permission, it’s no one else’s affair. It doesn’t harm anyone else; it doesn’t bother anyone else; it’s not “immodest” or a gang sign or whatever-the-hell people use as a basis for school dress codes.
As a high school teacher who very much enjoys her job, I say the school needs to chill. I don’t care a whole lot about the outward trappings of a student. I do care a ton about their heart/soul/mind/wellbeing.
body modification is one of the oldest forms of religion…
can a muslim wear a burka in school?a catholic a crucifix?a jew a yarmulke?
ignorance is no excuse.
Why can’t she just wear a clear stud?
They wear them to school here.
They wear them to school here.
They wear them to school here.
A federal judge ruled in the student’s favor and against the school. The bigger issue is why does having a nose ring effect her or any of her fellow students’ ability to learn in school? It seems reform efforts could be focused more effectively elsewhere.
fuck the girls with nose ring, looks so ugly