An Indiana family is suing a high school after their son was kicked off the basketball team for having long hair, according to the Indianapolis Star.
Patrick and Melissa Hayden filed a lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis against Greensburg Junior High, claiming that the team's haircut policy that got their son benched from the team is unconstitutional.
The 14-year-old boy was kicked off the team last fall for failing to comply with team rules that require players' hair to be above their eyebrows, collar and ears, according to the paper.
"What they're trying to do here is teach (their son) a life lesson, which simply is that you fight for what's right," Ron Frazier, the Haydens attorney, told the Indianapolis Star.
The school tells the paper the policy did not violate the boy's rights, saying that participating in extracurricular activities is a privilege, not a right.
An attorney for the school says the boy was not denied a right to an education; he just needed to follow a certain policy to play sports.
"It's two different standards. There is no right to engage in extracurricular activities," attorney Tuck Hopkins told the paper.
A similar case was brought before a Missouri federal court in 2003, but the judge dismissed the case, saying the grooming policy did not violate the player's constitutional rights.
Click here for more on this story from the Indianapolis Star.
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