Family claims girl was kicked off of cheerleading squad because of her curly hair

TOMBALL, TX - A mother in Tomball, Texas is speaking out, claiming her daughter was kicked off the cheerleading squad because of her curly hair.

Eleven year old Makayla Fallaw and her mother claim officials at Woodlands Elite Cheer told her she needed to straighten her hair to match the straight hairstyles of her teammates.

Makayla said, "It was bad.

"Because half of it was curled and half of it wasn't."

Jenny Fallaw said, "Just a few weeks ago is the first time I had heard about a special hairstyle."

Fallaw's mother was so outraged she met with officials of Woodlands Elite Cheer, to tell them why straightening would be a bad idea for her daughter's hair.

"It would destroy her hair, so I wanted to explain to them my reasoning," she said.

Officials at the center say they were willing to compromise, but chose to kick Makayla off the team because her mother refused to consider any other options.

Kevin Tonner with Woodlands Elite Cheer said, "When you come into the sport, you understand there is make up to it. There's hair to it."

"We were trying to make the exception. We were trying to find a compromise and a happy medium. And she wasn't willing to have a compromise. She was very defensive," Tonner said.

"It wasn't about hair. It was about we don't want this negativity on our team."

Makayla says her hair gives her confidence and her mother says she was not about to compromise on her daughter's natural beauty.

"I felt like I might make my daughter feel like her hair is not good enough because she's not like other girls," Jenny Fallaw said.

Jenny Fallaw says she plans to send her daughter to another cheering company.