Many middle and high school girls are faced with harsh policies when it comes to what can and cannot be worn at school. Someone somewhere decided what is considered acceptable in an educational environment. The dress code policy is enforced with one thing in mind: keeping their students safe. But can a dress code policy really keep students safe?
My school, in particular, banned any shirts that revealed any part of the shoulder or midriff as well as shorts, skirts, dresses, etc. that were shorter than fingertip length. After further reviewing the dress code, I discovered that low-rise jeans and jeans with holes in them are also considered unacceptable.
“We believe there is a correlation between how one dresses and how one behaves.”
“Establishing a favorable atmosphere for learning free from distractions.”
“Students should dress in such ways as to not present a risk to themselves.”
These three specific lines were pulled from my public high school’s dress code policy. Statements like these make it seem that women who dress in clothing that show off skin involve themselves in promiscuous activities. It is statements like these that make it seem that a woman’s natural body causes distractions among peers. Most importantly, statements like these reinforce the idea that women ask for it by wearing tighter and more revealing clothing.
Victims of both sexual harassment and sexual assault have taken to social media to put an end to the age-old question, “But what were you wearing?” when it comes to sexual attacks. These brave women share their story about the clothing they wore while they were assaulted.
Not so shocking, many of these victims wore clothing that would fit within the dress code policy. They were not wearing tank tops, mini-skirts, plunging v-shirts or anything like that.
One woman said she was wearing a hoodie, baggy jeans and a baseball cap. Another said she was wearing her school clothes.
The sad truth is that being sexually assaulted is not a one-time affair. A large amount of victims have been assaulted two, three, sometimes even four times. One woman shared that the first time she was assaulted she was wearing a long skirt with a blouse. The second time she was assaulted she was wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt while fighting a 102 degree fever.
So with all this in mind, do these dress codes really prevent girls from being sexually assaulted? I am sure school officials like to think so. In all actuality, what someone is wearing has very little affect over whether or not one is assaulted.
I am by no means proposing any and all dress codes to be completely thrown out the window. I completely understand that there actually is clothing that is inappropriate to wear to school. I do, however, think that the dress code policy severely needs to be revised.
We are in an age where serious strides for equality have been made. We will never be able to fully reach equality among genders with an out-of-date dress code like this.
