Houston to Shell Out $150,000 to Defend Police Beard Ban
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The Houston City Council has unanimously authorized spending up to $150,000 to defend the city in a lawsuit challenging the police department's ban on beards.
Council members spent more than an hour last night discussing the policy and questioning whether the police department's no-facial hair policy discriminates against men who cannot shave on medical or religious grounds.
Four police officers filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in November claiming the facial hair policy is discriminatory. The officers say the prohibition on beards and goatees is unfair for men with pseudofolliculitis barbae, a skin condition that reacts negatively to shaving. The condition primarily affects black men and can cause severe irritation, rashes and ingrown hair.
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The lawsuit says the men were reassigned to plain-clothes duty because of their facial hair.