I think almost every American girl has some story of when they got dressed coded in high school… whether it was justifiable or not every one has a memory of it during their years spent in high school. The true question many of have and even asked why is there a dress code in the first place?? Many of our teachers responded with to teach us how to be professional and prepare us for the real world. Others claim they were teaching us the proper way of representing ourselves. While sadly some girls where even told so we wouldn’t distract the boys during class…

So how did something they was started in the means of teaching us proper representation of our appearance turn into something sexual and a means of not distracting boys? How is this in anyway fair in a public education system that females are once again regarded as sexual objects and must conform around the consideration of boys. Why aren’t the boys dress code as harsh or specific as the girls? The girls could just easily be distracted by a fellow male classmates’ appearance, yet this never seems to be an issue.

The dress code is purely sexist. Girls have to be stressed about all the same classwork as boys, but on top of it have to ensure their clothes are appropriate or face harsh punishment as even humiliation in front of students and faculty members. In my experience I remember standing in the school’s office filled with principles, staff, students, and even parents while a teacher held a ruler to my thigh. Why was this seen as appropriate while boys were allowed to wear muscle tanks and the shirts cut all the way open and nothing happened to them?

As a public education institution I feel instead of ridiculing the girls for their shorts being to short or their blouse cut to low, they should be teaching everyone respect. Boys should be held to the same standard as girls. The boys should be taught it doesn’t matter what a girl has on you aren’t there for their girls you are there to be educated. They should be disciplined on their actions of how they are talking or treating female students. Rather than a punish a girl for wearing a tank top on a hot summer day.

Schools are still claiming that the harsh dress codes are a mean of professionalism, yet why isn’t there a single dress code in college. I mean this is higher education and means of learning how to be a professional and preparing for your career, yet not a single rule on clothing. There’s no crazy hysteria that the male students won’t be able to learn with female students wearing shorts next to him. This is because clothing has nothing to do with education. I’ve never once thought to myself I can’t focus or learn because of something someone has on or what they look like. So why are schools so easy to blame female bodies for boys lack of maturity and self control? I feel parents really need to stand up and fight for their daughters’ rights and not allow their kids to be publically objectified any longer to merely accommodate boys.