Clothes are a form of expression. We are able to showcase our personalities and our true selves through our clothing. However, clothing is also subjective. When we are constantly told to dress appropriately, we can’t help but wonder, what is appropriate? The Webster dictionary defines appropriate as, “meeting the requirements of a purpose or situation.” However, this is very relative. A school setting the appropriate way to dress would be casually. But because what is seen as causal to me could be different to what is seen as causal to someone 50 years ago, we are still put in a conflicting situation.
Dress codes are something that we always have debated. They are something that always have to be altered and be fit to the standards of the time. But times are changing and we need to revise some of the rules.
For instance, the argument that a girl showing her midriff or her shoulders would distract her from her learning is unfair. In what way would a piece of clothing be a distraction? The hidden truth is that some of the clothes are regulated to keep boys from being distracted. This is wrong. It stigmatizes that girls should dress for others as opposed to themselves. By saying that a girl’s clothing is “distracting” implies that she is responsible for making someone else feel something or their actions. Girls should not be shamed because of this.
It is also stereotyping boys and categorizing them as immature. They should not be looked down upon as immature and unable to control themselves just because a girl is showing her shoulders or the slightest bra strap. As long as the person who is wearing the clothes is comfortable, it shouldn’t matter what others think about them.
According to The Nation, a magazine, The American Psychological Association’s Task Force reports that “sexualization occurs when a person’s value comes only from his or her sexual appeal or behavior, to the exclusion of other characteristics.” In addition, girls begin to objectify themselves when they “learn to think of and treat their own bodies as objects of others desires.” This means that when security guards and teachers are constantly telling a girl that her body is a distraction and that she needs to cover up, they are teaching her that her body is something that is objectified and that harms a girl’s self-esteem and her confidence. It shames a girl and makes her feel embarrassed about her body. At what cost should we do this?
In the supreme court case decided on the Tinker vs. Des Moines School District case, the supreme court ruled that schools should only enforce dress codes if it prevents the disturbance of the school discipline. How does a girl’s wearing a spaghetti strap, or wearing headbands going to disturb the school discipline?
I am not saying that completely take out the dress code some people will take advantage of it. But just like the the Tinker vs. Des Moines case stated, as long as we are not showcasing gang signs and promoting violence, what is the harm of wearing shorts and spaghetti straps?
Once we leave high school, we will not be enforced with dress codes. In fact, you don’t see many of us dressing that differently outside of school. We are old enough to know what is inappropriate and what is appropriate and we certainly don’t need anyone to tell us.
Our dress codes should be there to protect us. Not limit us. School should feel like a place where we can safely be able to express ourselves without fear of being judged or criticized. If our opinions are allowed then why not our clothes?