Sydney Year 12 Student Banned from His Formal For Wearing A Palestinian Scarf
Image: Photo: (L) Stock Image, Ali Ahmed /Pexels, (R) Condell Park High School.
A Sydney student has been banned from his year 12 formal after wearing a Palestinian scarf — a keffiyeh — to his graduation ceremony.
The 17-year-old has lodged a complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission after being banned from attending the school’s final celebration at Condell Park High School on November 28.
The year 12 student expressed feeling humiliated and distraught after Condell Park staff members instructed him to remove the traditional black-and-white keffiyeh scarf that represents his Palestinian heritage at his graduation.
During his September graduation ceremony, the 17-year-old’s older sister had given him a keffiyeh as he waited to receive his certificate, so he could honour his Palestinian heritage on this milestone day.
Despite the longstanding tradition at the south-western Sydney school of encouraging students to wear cultural garments and accessories, staff instructed him to remove the scarf.
Photographs from the event show other students wearing cultural items, such as feathered cloaks and garlands, alongside their graduation gowns, highlighting the hypocrisy of allowing other cultural symbols while banning his.
Condell Park staff order student to remove keffiyeh
Despite the school’s tradition of embracing cultural expression, several teachers accused the boy of making a political statement and demanded he remove the scarf, he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Some staff even tried to stop him from posing for photos with classmates.
“I kept explaining that it’s a cultural thing that I wear on special occasions, but they kept saying that I was making a political statement in a public school and I can’t do that,” the teenager said.
“They said it wouldn’t be the smartest decision to keep it on and that I wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of the higher-ups so close to the end of the year,” he told SMH.
Two weeks later, the teenager was summoned to a senior staff member’s office and told that he would not be allowed to attend his Year 12 formal, the following Thursday, due to his decision to wear the scarf.
The teenager, who requested to remain anonymous, voiced his frustration over the school’s censorship, stating “The experience has ruined my high school memories.”
“I’ve been going there since I was in year 7. It’s supposed to be a place where I feel safe, and I’m not judged for who I am, but I was wrong,” he said.
School censorship of Palestinian scarf draws criticism
His older sister described Condell Park High School’s treatment of her brother as unjust, while other students were able to wear cultural attire without issue.
“The keffiyeh is a centuries-old garment worn by my family, grandparents, great-grandparents and many others in the Palestinian community,” she said.
“The public school system, which should be an inclusive environment, should not be punishing children because of their cultural background.”
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The teenager’s solicitor sent a complaint to the Department of Education requesting a formal apology and demanded he be re-invited to attend the formal.
His solicitor, Abdullah Reslan of Kings Law Group, stated “There are state and federal laws in place to protect the community against racial discrimination.
“It is alarming that taxpayer money is being spent on lawyers to prevent an innocent boy from attending his formal alongside his peers in these circumstances,” Reslan said.
