TV anchor says she was fired for having curly hair

Tabitha Bartoe was told her style did not align with company policy

A local television anchor in Knoxville, Tennessee, was fired allegedly for refusing to change her naturally curly hair.

Tabitha Bartoe, who was working as a weekend morning weather anchor for WATE, told Knox News that on the third day of her job her bosses pulled her away from training for a hair appointment and shopping spree to find new clothes.

After months of being criticised for her appearance, mostly because of her naturally curly hair, Bartoe said she was let go on 9 May because her style didn’t align with company policy.

“It doesn’t even sound real,” Bartoe told Knox News.

“The whole thing just sounds like a joke. And I wish it was.”

She said initially she thought that the company was only trying to help her in image building.

“It wasn’t necessarily a problem in the beginning because I was just assuming that they were just trying to help me and trying to build my professional image,” Bartoe said.

“I was willing to take advantage of it, but I think it was right away when they asked me if I was willing to ever get my hair relaxed.

“Or, ‘If you straighten your hair, the curl will fall out over time; that’s what we’re looking for.’

“That’s just not what I was looking for.... I’d like to have my natural hair.”

Later, she also shared her story in a post on social media.

“Everyone is beautiful and professional in their own ways,” she wrote.

“No matter if you have curly hair, or you’re not a size two, but a size 12.”

Women in the media have been subjected to sexist and often stereotypical beauty standards.

Last year, Canadian television journalist Lisa LaFlamme was allegedly fired after she stopped dyeing her hair and let her natural gray show.

In 2019, Brittany Noble-Jones, a news anchor in Mississippi, was let go after a supervisor complained about her natural hair.

The Independent has reached out to WATE for a comment.