SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Native American student plans to wear an eagle feather to his high school graduation Thursday after resolving a court fight with a California school district over the sacred object.
Christian Titman sued the Clovis Unified School District this week, saying officials refused to let him attach a 5-inch feather to the tassel on his graduation cap during the ceremony at Clovis High School, about 10 miles northeast of Fresno.
The 18-year-old is a member of the Pit River Tribe, which considers eagle feathers sacred and symbolic of a significant accomplishment.
District officials said they have a strict graduation dress code and previously refused to allow stoles, leis, rosaries and necklaces on caps and gowns.
Titman, who was represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, said the district was violating his rights to freedom of expression and religion under the California Constitution.
The case went to court before the sides agreed that Titman could wear the feather in his hair and attach it to his cap for the traditional tassel turn.
Tara Houska, a tribal rights attorney in Washington, D.C., said fights over eagle feathers come up every year around graduation time and show the need to educate people about Native American culture.
“Just like the hijab or yarmulke, this is something that is intrinsic to the religion,” she said. “This isn’t just a symbol or something that is an individual fashion choice.”
Titman is expected to be popular at Thursday’s graduation, an accomplishment that required him to scramble for credits after he struggled during his freshman and sophomore years, said his mom, Renee titman.
“Half his senior class wants to take pictures with him after what happened,” she said. The class has about 370 students, she said.
The district had granted Christian Titman an exception to keep his hair long after he enrolled, and his mom said she thought it would do the same for the eagle feather.
In a letter to Titman’s attorneys in May, Superintendent Janet Young said the district’s graduation dress code was intended in part to avoid “disruption … that would likely occur if students were allowed to alter or add on to their graduation cap and gown.”
School officials plan to meet with the teen after the ceremony to discuss how best to handle situations like his in the future, Renee Titman said.
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