A Black student in California was befuddled when he was kicked out of his own graduation ceremony by a police man, for no crime other than having a kente cloth draped around his neck.
Nyree Holmes of the Cosumnes Oaks High School in Elk Grove, California, attended the ceremony as one of the graduants, the merit scholar no less. Holmes, however, was kicked out at a point because he refused to take off the cloth, which led to a policeman being asked to kick him out.
Holmes shared the story on twitter in a series of tweets, protesting at the treatment that was meted out to him.According to him, after walking accross the stage, he was stopped by an official who asked him to take off the kente cloth. He said he refused, leading to the police being put on him to escort him
He said he only wore the cloth as an expression of his heritage, but officials of the (predominantly) white school refused to understand that.
“I wanted to wear my kente cloth as a representation of my pride in my ancestors, to display my cultural and religious heritage as my particular cloth was made by Christians in Ghana- where the kente cloth has been worn by royalty and during important ceremonies for hundreds if not thousands of years.” he told the Atalanta Black Star.
Check out his story below….
@nyreehesr so I wore this thing called a kente cloth (cultural cloth from Ghana) around my neck. That represents my, pic.twitter.com/6SG8NSnBFh
— Nyree Holmes (@nyreehesr) May 25, 2016
@nyreehesr so I tell him “no this is mine”.The mason proceeds to tell me that I cannot walk the stage with it on. And I respond” but I will”
— Nyree Holmes (@nyreehesr) May 25, 2016
@nyreehesr that he has no agenda. So he proceeds to tell me that he will have the police remove me. So he brings over some ‘rent-a-cop’
— Nyree Holmes (@nyreehesr) May 25, 2016
@nyreehesr home clear. I go through shaking all the hands and smiling feeling as if I won. Them when I get to the stairs I see 3 sherriffs
— Nyree Holmes (@nyreehesr) May 25, 2016
@nyreehesr let her know that I’m being taken out by the police. I stop to ask them if I can get my diploma and drop off my cap and gown.
— Nyree Holmes (@nyreehesr) May 25, 2016
And how’s the Kente made by Christians? For all we know, it could be made by none Christians as well. As for Kente, it is sad that such a significant cloth is being devalued for the purpose of looking different.