Sarah Byrd

Rogers
Writing 1010
Rewrite
Sexism in the School Yard
Upon entering the public school systems, there are obviously some guidelines that must be
followed; behave in class, do the assigned tasks, follow instruction, but what seems to be the
most enforced is to follow dress code. Dress codes today are rather similar; nothing to short or
revealing, don't wear hats inside, nothing gang related or vulgar, but why is it that girls have a
stricter dress code than guys? Girls are not suppose too wear shirts that dont cover their
shoulders completely, shorts that arent mid-thigh, and in some High Schools cases- extreme hair
colors. More often than not, if a guy decides to sag his pants a little, revealing his underwear, he
isn't given a belt, or even a warning for that matter. A different course is taken though, when a
girl has too low cut of a shirt or her shoulders are showing. The administration has specified
shirts to give out in case of dress code being broken and is typically an overly baggy, crew neck
shirt to wear with no objection, taking away that girls sense of expression and femininity. What
is the reason behind this? To keep the boys from being distracted? To keep the male teachers
from being turned on? I would like to think so, because what other purpose does it have? Girls
don't find it distracting when other girls wear too short of shorts, but still we are forced to cover
up our bodies because it is assumed the male students and teachers will over sexualize our bodies
making the learning environment difficult to learn in.
It is understandable to think that short dresses or skirts are distracting for they
continue to get shorter, tighter and are rather reveling. There is a simple reasoning behind the

progression of dress codes and why it becomes more skimpy as the years begin to pass. A reason
that skirts started to become shorter is that in WWII the cloth was rationed (Lambert) and so to
compensate the skirts become shorter. When the war ended and rations no longer applied, the
style had changed and women now felt proud to show off their bodies once again. They began
wearing tight clothing, shorter clothing, anything to show off whatever they had. After being
trapped in baggy clothes for decades, no wonder any modern day women wouldnt want to show
off what they had been hiding under their previously baggy clothes. There was a disadvantage
though; women could no longer go out without their nipples peeking through the overly tight,
thin clothing unless they decided to wear a bra which in 1913 Mary Phelps Jacob [had]
invented. She used two handkerchiefs joined by ribbon (Lambert) to keep the girls covered. It
wasnt very popular at the time it was created, but eventually the idea took off. The question
arises though: why is a bra strap showing considered so shocking in a school environment?
Every girl over the age of at least 14 should be wearing a bra, there is no reason someone in high
school shouldn't be wearing one, it is normal. It is a bra strap, not a nipple.
1969 was the first time dress codes were formally recognized. Several Student in Des
Moines, Iowa wore Black Armbands to school in a planned protest against the Vietnam War
(FindLaw, par. 3), it was then decided that school were allowed to limit a student's expression if
there is a concern for a disruption in the learning environment, but what qualifies are distracting?
Openly protesting and gang related issues would cause tension and violence at the school, and
having restriction apply to make the school environment safe is understandable, and any sort of
related material should be banned. There is no question about that part of the dress code; a school
should be a safe environment not just for the students but also for the teachers. Vulgar language
that appears on clothing should be covered, again as a safety net, which could be taken

offensively. But what is so wrong about having a shoulder being exposed? In 1972, schools
receiving Federal Funds were prohibited from discriminating on the basis of sex (Cooper),
allowing girl to not be required to wear skirts to school any longer. This was a big step for
women equality, and well made them feel equal. But once again, we are facing the fact that there
is a belief that men deserve more than women. Yet Sunseri, a student interview for an article on
The Atlantic states My principal constantly says that the main reason for [a dress code] is to
create a distraction-free learning zone for our male counterparts (Zhou). How is that equal? If
a girl where to complain about a fellow male student wearing a tank top, they would simply
approach the specified student and ask that they put on a shirt rather than confronting the whole
male student body and making a more enforced, set rule. However, the ruling over school dress
codes is very vague, giving the school administration unnecessary power over students, and by
having that power they are using it to shaming girls and their bodies.
In a country that is praised for being equal, it is hard to go along with that simple phrase,
when something as simple as equality in school environment isnt followed. Men are more
privileged at public high schools, jobs, and taught that being a sissy is an insult. They are taught
from a young age that they are more deserving than women, just by setting something as simple
as a biased and sexist dress code, reinforcing their power over women in High School. Women
are just as deserving as men, and for years have been trying to get equal pay, equal benefits,
equal everything because we are equal and should be given the recognition as well as the
opportunity to work in a distraction free environment. School dress codes should still be
enforced, but both genders should be recognized equally.

Cooper, Kathleen. Wearing the Pants: A Brief Western History of Pants The Toast. Fashion. 07
August 2014. 09 November 2015.
http://the-toast.net/2014/08/07/wearing-pants-brief-history/
Lambert, Tim. A Brief History of Womens Clothing. Local Histories. Local Histories. 2015.
09 November 2015 http://www.localhistories.org/womensclothes.html
Reuters, Thomson. School Dress Codes. FindLaw. Thomas Reuters. 09 November 2015
http://education.findlaw.com/student-rights/school-dress-codes.html
Zhou, Li. The Sexism of School Dress Codes. The Atlantic. The Atlantic Monthly Group. 20
October 2015. 09 November 2015 http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/schooldress-codes-are-problematic/410962/