Dressing Down

So, the big news in Moncton last week was about a young girl attending Harrison Trimble High School who took a stand against what she believes is unfair discrimination against females at her school. She wore a dress to class that, allegedly, didn’t fall into the confines of the school’s dress code guidelines and she was given detention because her outfit was seen as “inappropriate” and a “sexual distraction” to young (and oddly, older) males at the school.

The issue has been covered from all sorts of different angles, with the young lady drumming up a lot of support for her fight. My opinion of the issue aside, I believe that this girl is a great representative of what we should want in our young people; someone who stands up for what they believe in and that can do so in a respectful and eloquent manner.  Kudos to you, Miss!

Regardless of how this issue shakes out, it allows me to bring forth an opinion that I have had for several years now that isn’t necessarily a popular one.  I think it’s time to ask why schools – who are obviously concerned (maybe overly so) with dress code – haven’t instituted the policy of school uniforms for their students?  Before you get out the torches and pitchforks and accuse me of trying to take away kids’ individuality, let me explain.

Back when I went to school, as it is today, the way a child dressed was a huge indicator of social status and in many cases it determined which clique you belonged to. You had your ‘preps’, with only the most expensive clothing and top of the line running shoes. Those were the popular kids who ran in all the best circles and their wardrobes certainly indicated it. You had the ‘skids’, whose wardrobes generally consisted of well-worn denim jeans and jackets with their favorite heavy metal band patches on them. Despite some of those kids being the absolute kindest people you would ever meet, they were categorized as lower on the food chain and were somehow looked down upon by the more popular kids. You had your ‘poor kids’ who didn’t have the latest designer brands, the ‘burnouts’ who didn’t care how they dressed, and the ‘nerds’ who couldn’t put together a fashionable outfit to save their lives. All these kids were judged and placed in social circles simply because of their daily attire.  It was foolish then and it’s foolish now.  I say give everyone one uniform to wear and watch how fast those prejudices disappear.

Every year, there are parents who shell out hundreds of dollars to make sure their kids are decked out in new clothes for school so they don’t look like ragamuffins next to some of their peers. I, sadly, am one of those parents. $8 for a polo shirt and $10 for a pair of khakis would be a heck of a lot easier to swallow than $65 for the newest Under Armour hoodie. Imagine how easy it would be to get your kids out the door in the morning as well! No more trying on 10 outfits before they decide on one; Heaven to Moms and Dads.  By the way, the first kid who complains about not be able to ‘express themselves’ through their clothes, I simply point to the lyrics of a song that was popular back in my school days – like the Fresh Prince’s Mom says “You go to school to learn, not for a fashion show.”

Speaking of expression, though, true expression shouldn’t come from the clothes you wear. I’m speaking directly to you, kids. It should come from important things like your creativity, your personality, and what you bring to the table as a human being. Do you want your worth determined by the labels you wear on your clothes or the type of person you are?  Don’t you think it might be easier to form an opinion about someone if you didn’t make a snap judgement about them based on the way they’re dressed? You and I both know the answer to that one.

When it all boils down to it, schools should be institutions of learning where kids are coming together to help one another instead of segregating each other into groups based on a trivial thing like fashion. There are so many problems in this province’s education system, we really shouldn’t be putting the dress someone chooses to wear to school at the forefront of any discussion involving our kids’ educations.

If the schools are going to leave dress code open to interpretation and areas of grey, they shouldn’t be surprised when things like last week’s brouhaha erupt from time to time. I think it’s stupid for schools to tell a young girl that her outfit is sexually distracting, but it’s equally as stupid to assume that kids won’t challenge authority and push the envelope of what is deemed acceptable if the opportunity to do so is available.

Take the distractions away and put everyone in the same uniform. If you give kids less reasons to judge one another, you might be shocked at how well they can get along. Maybe all this time spent arguing about bare shoulders could be better spent actually learning about what’s important? I think we should try the idea on for size.