Argumentative Essay: Debunking The Dress Code

It is of no possible argument that some of the most valuable and lasting ideas of life and the world around us are taught and learned at school. Hard work does you well. Cheaters never prosper. Education is the key to success. Girls bodies are a distraction and objects to be inevitably sexualized and harassed. This may sound over exaggerated, but this is the message beings sent to millions of students near and far by the sexist, self-esteem demolishing, unfocused dress codes in schools today. This said, dress codes in schools create a negative environment, putting the focus on the wrong things and ideas, both promoting rape culture and a strong sense of sexism.

First of all, the thought that dress codes are supposed to be created equally and fairly is absolutely mind blowing. Author, Ellen Friedrichs, provides many facts and myths about dress code that makes you think differently about the whole situation. Friedrichs points out, "So, far from putting all students on equal footing, dress codes disproportionately affect certain students more than others and the idea that a dress code will prevent students from noticing difference is laughable"(Friedrichs). Going along with her statement, instead of boys feeling attacked; it is more girls that feel that way. The dress code policy is more directed towards girls and how they dress rather than the boys. If anything, the administration should feel guilty for body shaming girls and making them feel insecure and ashamed of their bodies. All girls come in all different shapes and sizes. A shirt that looks modest on one girl may look completely different on another due to her body shape. Boys and girls should be free to dress however they want and what makes them feel confident. Dress code destroys all individuality and creativity. The claim the administration made about dress code towards girls is that, some clothes that girls wear distract boys from their work. Girls should not be blamed for the immaturity of boys.

If one young lady can wear shorts with a “four inch inseam” or a skirt “no more than three inches from the center of the kneecap” (Carroll High School Student Handbook 2010-2011 17) then why can’t the same girl wear a pair of jeans with a small hole in them below the kneecap? All eyes are turned towards the girl sporting the classy dress and no one even notices the small hole located in the shinbone area. The strict dress codes do teach the students to dress in a respectable manner that will be necessary in future job efforts, however high school students are not at work. A majority of students have jobs and comply to the job related dress code because they are being paid to do so however, they are not being paid at school and simply want to be able to express themselves while in the public eyes of their peers. The administration is exercising all of their power to prevent the wearing of what they believe to be as inappropriate clothes, when in reality it is not.

America, the “land of the free, and home of the brave.” Unfortunately, this doesn 't mean “land of the free to wear whatever one desires.” In fact, school dress codes are taking away American students’ self expression, infringing on their freedom of speech, and enforcing sexist discrimination all over the country. A recent case, that occurred at Tottenville High School in Staten Island, New York, blatantly displays the negative effects dress codes are having on students, especially females. In the first couple of days of the semester, this high school managed to give 200 detentions to students for violating the dress code. Ironically enough, 90 percent of these students were girls (Swafford). The discouraging part is that schools are easily able to get away with this kind of discrimination. This is made possible by state laws that give school boards the power to enforce whatever dress codes they think are necessary to promote a distraction free learning environment, maintain discipline, and to push students to dress similarly in order to create a uniformity in the schools (“School Dress Codes”). The purpose of dress codes may be to create a distraction free learning environment; in reality, however, they produce an environment where students feel discriminated against and aren 't free to express themselves.

How do you feel when you get in trouble at school for trying to express who you really are with the clothes you just bought and you thought looked really cool in, but turned out it was breaking the dress code, you feel embarrassed right? Well, all schools have a dress code of some sort whether it's a uniform, or you can and can't wear certain clothes. Schools should not have dress codes because students can easily find a loophole in dress code rules, they don't let people express who they are, and uniforms are expensive. These dress codes schools use are to keep people from being bullied. The only problem is the girls are getting targeted more because they wear tank tops with spaghetti straps and leggings so the schools banned them. It's unfair

Ensuing President Bill Clinton's State of the Union address in January of 1996, more and more public schools are implementing dress codes and uniform policies in their schools. As a result, there has been an increase in legal controversies dealing with the issue. The reason that dress codes are not conclusively enforced is due to the application of the First Amendment to juveniles in the public school setting. The First Amendment states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Should children in public

Dress codes are a flawed and outdated system that should be taken out of school systems entirely. Dress codes promote a patriarchal society. This is due to the fact that one of the most prevalent reasons dress codes exist for women is because “they are too

In my opinion, the school dress codes are in fact sexist. I, myself am a teenage girl who goes to high school. I’ve had to deal with school dress codes for about seven years now, and there have been times when I had to miss class for periods of time because of something I had on. In the end, I missed my class. I missed my assignments.

Any girl that has ever attended public school knows about the struggle of a dress code. On those hot days as the school year approaches, girls pour over their closets trying to find an outfit they won’t get called out for or sweat to death in. All their dresses are too revealing, their shorts too short, and their shirts reveal way too much shoulder—or so the schools say. Girls have been attacked time and time again with dress codes. Policies are almost always directed strictly towards girls; some even specify for girls only. These dress codes are not only sexist towards women, but they limit female’s freedom of expression and their choice to feel comfortable, and they do not teach female’s to have self confidence.

Everyone knows what getting dress-coded is but why does it happen? Enforcing dress codes is a way to maintain a professional learning environment, however, dress codes desperately need to be updated constantly in order to work. Current dress codes are improperly enforced, as well as improperly targeted toward women. The issue should not be that a woman's shoulder is distracting, the issue is that a boy “cannot learn” because he cannot keep himself under control when presented with the sight of skin. In addition, dress codes teach women that it is their fault when men sexualize them, therefore increasing the idea in rape culture that it is the victim's fault and that "Boys will be boys." The way that dress codes are currently enforced is unfair, sexist, and unjust.

Have you ever been excluded from learning because of what you wore to school? In most schools, dress codes are set in place to provide a better learning space for all students. Having a dress code can oppress students because students are given the impression that they should not express themselves. Not all families can afford the clothes that abide by the rules. For example, some students don 't have the means to pay for new clothes, so they have to use hand-me-down clothing. Enforcing a dress code can lead to more problems in the long run because of the exceptions made for students who are athletes and cheerleaders. Many school faculty members including teachers and administrators think that keeping a dress code will keep students looking appropriate while learning, but this idea is wrong because it keeps students from expressing themselves and, the dress code singles out women.

Dress codes in middle and high schools are a form of discrimination against teenage girls in today’s society. Parents and students all over the country argue that dress codes are directed mainly at girls and are a blatant example of gender inequality. The idea behind the strict enforcement of a dress code is that it will teach self-respect and raise moral standards for the students. However, when the reason for many dress code violations is questioned the rationale is often to prevent distracting the male students. Young women across the country are being shamed and punished for wearing what schools consider immodest and being a distraction to their male peers. This discrimination against female students results in their clothes being strictly regulated and dress coded more often than male students’ clothes are. The enforcement of these discriminatory dress codes has become a form of public humiliation for female students. Theoretically, a dress code makes sense and should be effective. In reality, it does not affect how students dress but causes a distraction and interruption of a girl’s education.

In dress code rules, it seems most of the rules target females. Boys are hardly ever disciplined for wearing “inappropriate” clothing. “I’ve never seen a boy called out for his attire even though they do also break the rules” (Zhou 1).When schools target girls on what they wear, it makes them not only upset, but sometimes embarrassed. “Conflict over these policies has also spawned hundreds of change.org petitions and numerous school walkouts” (Zhou 1). Instead of being a facility for education, dress code turns too much attention towards clothing “distractions”. Therefore, the blame should be placed on the school administration, because the dress code they put together results in students not attending classes. Not only does the dress code distract students from their school work, it makes female students feel insecure about they way they look. “Many of these protests have criticized the dress code as sexist in that they unfairly target girls by body-shaming and blaming them for promoting sexual harassment” (Zhou 1). Most of the time when girls are called out for what they wear, it is said they are distracting boys, or putting themselves out there. Boys themselves even go far enough to say the girls are “asking for it”. The dress code falsely blames girls for being promiscuous, when most of the time they are just wearing clothes that are in style. Situations like this have happened so many times, and are still occurring

Jan Conley, author of the article School and Dress Codes says that people that are against dress code policies stress the legal and

Dress codes are worldwide and many people have problems dealing with them. Uniforms or dress codes are implemented at both jobs and school. Some dress codes make it to where people cannot express who they are or how they may feel. Dress codes should be implemented but not as strict. Uniforms help many people financially, but that does not keep the issues such as bullying away. They also limit people to who they are and that is not okay. Lighten up on dress codes.