The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Photographer extends glamorous offer to girl denied a school photo
NAPERVILLE, ILL. — Eight-yearold Marian Scott loved her red hair extensions, which she had worn on and off since the start of the school year. But when it came time for school photos at her charter school in Jackson, Michigan, Marian was told that her hair was a violation of the dress code and she wouldn’t be photographed, according to her father, Doug Scott.
The experience was crushing for the high-spirited thirdgrader, her father said. But Marian recently got a confidence boost, thanks to professional photographer Jermaine Horton, of Naperville, who drove nine hours roundtrip to Michigan so Marian could enjoy a deluxe photo shoot with studio backdrops and wardrobe changes.
“She’s a natural,” said Horton. “She’s a beautiful little soul.”
Marian’s father, who is black, said he believes the school dress code was not applied fairly to children of different races and skin colors. “There were two kids this year who took pictures with Mohawks, and one had green in his hair,” he said. “My daughter’s one of the darkest in the school, and even some children that were lightskinned black like myself, they had different colors in their hair, and the school allowed that.” An official at the school, Paragon Charter Academy, referred the Tribune to a written statement quoting the student handbook. “Hair color must be of natural tones,” the handbook says.
Marian was a little nervous when she arrived at the Nov. 9 photo shoot, but Horton played her favorite singer, Ariana Grande, and soon Marian was dancing with Horton’s children, My’Jey, 7, and Jeremiah, 3. “You could just see her smiling, laughing, being a kid,” Horton said.
Horton said he had heard of other hairstyle controversies involving black children, but they occurred in far-off states or during wedding season, when it’s difficult for him to free up his schedule. When he heard about Marian, he called her dad.
“I was very surprised,” said Doug Scott. “It put me in tears. It was unbelievable.”
Horton was moved as well. “As a father, you want to protect your little girls,” he said. “You’ve got to go the extra mile.”
Horton reached out to his friend Pamela Blackman, of Joy Entertainment + Event Management, who bought dresses for the photo shoot. Fashion designer Mieka Joi also donated outfits.
Marian rose to the occasion at the photo shoot and ended up having a great time, her father said.
Horton, galvanized by Marian’s treatment and a CNN report on a 4-year-old Texas boy whose family was told his hair was too long for preschool, decided to start the Art of Confidence Project, in which he will photograph black kids who are punished for their hairstyles.