Darryl George, the Barbers Hill High School student in Mont Belvieu, Texas, whose hairstyle nearly cost him his junior year, has filed a petition to return for his senior year.

George has asked a federal judge for a temporary restraining order to prevent district officials from punishing him further. According to The Associated Press, it would allow him to return to school with his locs while a federal lawsuit proceeds.

Last year, George and his mother filed a federal lawsuit alleging Barbers Hill officials handled the incident with racial prejudice and gender discrimination.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Brown dismissed their lawsuit in August. According to the judge, more harm than good stems from the school district’s hair length rule. The judge only allowed the gender discrimination claims to stand.

“Judge Brown please help us so that I can attend school like a normal teenage student during the pendency of this litigation,” George said in an August affidavit, per the AP.

According to recent court documents filed by George’s attorney, Allie Booker, the student was “forced to unenroll.” She further explained the ruling “caused him significant emotional distress, ultimately leading to a nervous breakdown. As a result, we had no choice but to remove him from the school environment.”

Despite George’s decision to leave, Booker clarified that it was necessary to survive and that he was compelled to return due to the quality of the schools.

Darryl George

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