DRACUT, MA (WCVB/CNN) - A Massachusetts woman alleged her young daughter's head was shaved without her permission, and she's demanding answers.
Denise Robinson shared photos of her 7-year-old daughter, Tru. One showed her with long, flowing hair, the other after her head was shaved against her will, at the urging of the staff of the residential program where the girl lives.
"I'm very upset, and I'm not going to stop being upset because I feel like my child was assaulted," Robinson said.
Tru lives at the Little Heroes, a residential home for children 5 to 11 years old with emotional and behavioral issues.
Robinson claims on Monday, staff there took Tru to a barber shop or salon and had her hair completely shaved - no permission given or asked for.
"To be honest with you, they made a game out of it," Tru's mom said. "They gave her candy while they were cutting her hair. And after they cut her hair, and then they told her, 'Oh, it will grow back straight, don't worry.'"
Robinson considers that racist; Tru is biracial. But the program insisted it's part of their hygiene program, and that they could do it anytime.
"There was no hygienical reason for them to shave my child's head," Robinson said. "There were no head lice, there were no bed bugs, there was no what I refer to as 'Rasta locks.'"
The group home said in a statement it is investigating what happened, adding that grooming decisions are based on several factors, including hygiene. Robinson said she wants her daughter moved into a different group home and wishes to meet with state child and family services officials.
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