Think back to your last day of school. One of the biggest reasons for your excitement to leave was probably to get away from the endless rules you’d been required to follow since you were a kid.High schools are known for their rules. Some can seem a little pointless, like no non-natural hair dye, no bathroom breaks during class, no chewing gum, and homework every night – no excuses.
One high school senior thought he’d left his school’s rules behind, but he forgot – he still had to graduate.You’d think that graduation would be a time for celebration, not a time for jobsworths upholding petty rules, seemingly delighting in being unhelpful.But a representative of Hahnville High School in Boutte, Louisiana, decided that today was her biggest chance to ruin a student’s celebrations.
Daverius Peters showed up at the convention center where his graduation was being held, expecting no trouble.
The petty school representative, however, had other ideas. She blocked Daverius from entering the convention center – and you won’t believe her reason why.
Recalling the bizarre situation to USA Today, Daverius said:
“She just stopped me saying I couldn’t wear my shoes. Another kid had the exact same shoes, so I was confused.”
According to the school’s dress codes, male students needed to wear dark dress shoes – no tennis shoes allowed.
Daverius was wearing Alexander McQueen black leather sneakers with white rubber soles. He paired them with a dress shirt, tie and black pants, according to the school policy.
Yes, he had deviated from the dress code with his shoes, but it wasn’t like his shoes were bright green or purple. And would anybody care? Of course not!
One person who obviously did care, though, was the school’s representative, who was firm on her decision to permit Daverius from entering.
“I was embarrassed. I was humiliated. And I was just shocked when it started because my shoes were black and dark-colored, so like why am I getting stopped.”
Understandably, Daverius was in a panic. He had no time to go home and change his shoes, and he simply couldn’t miss his graduation.
That’s when a hero stepped in.
John Butler, a teacher at the school, was here to watch his daughter graduate. In a Facebook post, he explained:
“Last minute before they close the doors to graduation. The young brother comes walking towards me in a panic. He’s like, Mr. John they won’t let me graduate because I don’t have the proper shoes for the dress code🤷🏾♂️ he says the lady down there said I can’t walk to get my diploma because of the shoes I’m wearing. In total disbelief I go down to confirm. And sure enough she tells me the same thing.”
Knowing that now was not the time to start an argument with the school’s representative, John tried to think of other solutions.
And that’s when a genius idea hit him: he’d just have to give his size 11 shoes to the high school senior.
Hilariously, John’s shows were so big for Daverius’ feet that they looked like slippers.
They were far more ridiculous and obviously abnormal than Daverius’ actual shoes – but there was nothing the school’s representative could say about it.
Daverius’ family had missed all the drama, and there was a bit of confusion when his name was called.
“I’m like, ‘That is Daverius,’ and they were like, ‘No, that is not Daverius. That kid has on brown shoes,’” Jima Smith recalled.”
It’s a funny story, but Daverius shouldn’t have nearly missed out on his graduation for something so insignificant