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DMV forces teen to remove makeup to get license photo

A South Carolina teen says he was unfairly forced by the DMV to take off makeup, which he usually wears, simply because he is male.
Chase Culpepper

A South Carolina teen says he was unfairly forced by the DMV to take off makeup, which he usually wears, simply because he is male.

Chase Culpepper, 16, said he wears makeup every day to school and to work. He said officials at his local motor vehicles office refused to allow him to get his driver’s license unless he looked more like a boy.

That meant removing the makeup, according to WHNS.

Culpepper thinks he was unfairly singled out, and that the DMV officials told him the makeup was a “disguise” that was not acceptable for a legal identification photo.

A DMV spokesperson defended the requirement as part of their photo policy, which says license photos are not allowed to alter one’s appearance “so the photo would misrepresent his or her identity.”

That means a male needs to “look like a male” according to the DMV spokesperson.

Culpepper’s mother said she supports him, and some media outlets reported the family was considering legal action.

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