OPINION

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By Georgia McManus

A girl is outside in her athletic shorts and sports bra. Photo credit: pxhere.com.

Most high schools enforce dress codes that strictly limit how much skin girls may have on display. There are many similarities between many schools’ dress codes, like the fingertip length rule regarding shorts and dresses, a ban on spaghetti straps, and a ban on cropped tops. According to Lyn Mikel Brown, a professor of education at Colby College, as girls mature and grow older, their “bodies become objects of adult interest and surveillance” at school, as their clothing is monitored and more restricted by school policies.

In school, girls are commonly told to cover their legs, shoulders, and midriffs to not distract others, specifically boys. Adults at school force girls to change the way they dress to prevent any source of distraction, when instead they should be teaching the boys and staff not to objectify women. With such strict dress codes, girls are essentially being told it is their fault that boys are getting distracted at school, when girls deserve no blame at all. Young women are being viewed from a sexual perspective, and it is the perspective that needs to change, not their clothing.

Girls of all different heights walking and wearing similar length shorts. Photo credit: pixabay.com.

Another issue is how a dress code would apply to transgender or gender-nonconforming students. A student who has just transitioned from male to female may suddenly be confronted with strict rules about how much skin they can show, but it is possible they feel most in touch with their true identity in certain clothing that is not permitted. Everyone expresses their gender identity in different ways. They should be able to dress how they are most comfortable, whether that be in a short dress, a crop top, shorts, or tank top. According to Kimmie Fink, an educator and consultant for the Human Rights Campaign, “a dress code should never target specific identities,” meaning if there is a dress code in place, then it should be applied equally for everyone at a school. 

Self-expression plays a crucial role in identity development and a major form of this expression is through one’s clothing. “Fashion and clothing is a field where clothes are used to create and reveal a cultural and social identity. The identity phenomenon of the person is embodied in body by clothing and fashion.” As a society, we can learn much about a person based on how they dress and express themselves.

A UN representative wearing a colorful head scarf at the United Nations. Photo credit: UN Women.

In 2019, the National Women’s Law Center published a report that found that Black girls are statistically more likely to be targeted by a dress code than white girls. Hair wraps or other head coverings like bonnets are banned at many schools. These are often worn by Black women to protect their hair or hairstyles and have long since been a part of African American history. By banning such head coverings, Black girls are being denied protective articles of clothing that are a part of their culture and are in no way offensive or disrespectful. 

Before COVID, Collegiate Upper School enforced a dress-code that banned many articles of clothing, preventing some students from wearing what they felt most comfortable in. This year, Collegiate’s 2021-2022 Student Handbook states students may not wear “Sweat/yoga/athletic pants or gym shorts” or “Athletic pullovers and sweatshirts with print other than Collegiate or a college name.” Despite this, students were encouraged by staff to wear athletic clothes over the last two years, as locker rooms weren’t open for after-school sports due to COVID-19 restrictions. The handbook is not consistent with what is enforced by teachers, making it difficult to know what we truly may or may not wear. The handbook also targets traditional girls’ clothing in saying, “Shorts, dresses, and skirts are to reach mid-thigh length (for most students, fingertip length)” and students may not wear “spaghetti straps, strapless tops, clothing with cut outs, or tops which reveal the midriff or back.” 

A girl wearing rolled denim shorts outside. Photo credit: John Benson.

The fingertip length policy can be difficult to follow at Collegiate, as that length of shorts is very hard to find. I have always struggled to find perfect shorts that both meet the length requirements and work as a functional part of my wardrobe. Along with numerous other girls, if I were to wear baggy shorts that go down to my knees to school, I would not feel confident, and I’d be self-conscious all day. Girls with certain attributes, like longer legs or larger body types, are also more likely to be targeted for their dress. 

Being “dress-coded,” or specifically called out by a teacher or administrator for one’s dress, is also extremely embarrassing, especially when you are reprimanded in front of your peers. It can sometimes even feel like slut-shaming, as if your teacher is appalled that you would show what they believe is too much skin. It feels like our shoulders, backs, and legs all became inappropriate once we reached Middle School. What makes them too scandalous to show now? By dress coding a student, teachers are taking away learning time from their classes and distracting other students. 

Girls have created organizations like SPARK and NYRA that work to empower girls and fight oppressive policies, hoping to show administrators how they target and harm girls’ self-image and confidence. SPARK’s mission statement begins with, “SPARK Movement is a girl-fueled, intergenerational activist organization working to ignite and foster an antiracist gender justice movement to end violence against women and girls and promote girls’ healthy sexuality, self-empowerment and well-being.” NYRA speaks out against the dress code saying, “Being able to wear what you want is part of a person’s right to freedom of speech, which NYRA believes everyone deserves regardless of age.”

A protest sign meant to empower other women. Photo credit: pxhere.com.

Schools across the United States have dress codes that sexualize and objectify girls, allowing adults to police girls’ bodies. Rather than having two seperate dress codes for boys and girls, there should be one universal dress code that lets kids express themselves and feel confident in what they’re wearing. I think Collegiate should not return to its former, stricter dress-code that was enforced before COVID-19 and should continue allowing shirts with printed words, athletic clothes, blue jeans, and pullovers with print other than the Collegiate or college names. Being reprimanded for a dress code violation is not only embarrassing for the student, but is more distracting for their peers than the actual article of clothing. Society needs to preach the importance of respecting women’s bodies rather than force women to cover themselves to prevent distraction.