School rules, hair and the Constitutional Court: the path laid by Pillay
As learners across the country challenge racial discrimination at their schools, and governing bodies begin to update their codes of conduct in response, it is useful to take a break to consider what the Constitutional Court has said about schools, rules and inclusiveness. It is time to consider the case of MEC v Pillay.
In the spring of 2004, Sunali, a learner at Durban Girls’ High School, arrived at school with a small gold stud in her nose, which her mother had given as part of a Hindu coming-of-age tradition. The school concluded that the stud violated its code of conduct, and refused to grant her an exemption. She was told to remove it. When she refused, the school started disciplinary proceedings and her mother responded by taking the school to court.
The case ended up at the Constitutional Court, which held that the school had unfairly discriminated against Sunali by refusing to grant her an exemption. The Court also ordered the school to revise its code of conduct, in consultation with parents, learners and teachers, to allow more clearly for religious and cultural exemptions.
Twelve years later, with schools revising their rules in response to learner activism, Pillay remains relevant.
Most importantly, the Constitutional Court emphasised that diversity is not something to be feared, or even only tolerated. It is to be celebrated. As stated by Chief Justice Langa: