September 20, 2018

                     Do you feel like school dress codes are too strict? Or maybe you feel restricted from expressing yourself since you can’t wear what you truly want. Dress codes in high schools are supposed to make the school a more conducive environment for learning and not “distracting” but instead, dress codes target young women and making them feel out of place at schools. There have been multiple accounts reported of females getting suspended because their skirts are too short, or sent to the office for not wear bras, and even being forced to put duct tape over the holes in their jeans. This doesn’t bring the focus to learning and staying on task, it brings the focus from the academics to the bodies of young women.

                    There have been stories reported of this also happening inside the walls of our beloved Whitney M. Young Magnet High School. “Put your sweater on and cover your shoulders,” (Isa Sanchez ‘20) “Is your brain working? Your shorts are very tight,” (Lauren Radomski ‘19)  “Your whole back can’t be out, it’s a distraction,” (Payton James ‘20) and “Did your mom let you walk out the house with that on?” (Maiya Austen ‘21) The list goes on and on. All of these quotes are from high school females who attend Whitney Young. Not only are these comments rude as well as sexist, they make us as women want to crawl into a dark hole and never come out. It only draws attention to our bodies and make us even more self conscious than we might already be. It’s extremely hard as it is growing up as a woman, forcing to conform to societal norms. Continuing to attack young women for what they wear isn’t going to make them stop wearing it. Crop-tops, leggings, sleeveless dresses, and low back shirts are all types of clothing that women get shamed for wearing as if all humans don’t have backs, or shoulders, or stomachs. The mindset of extreme dress coding and harassing teenage girls must stop and it’s extremely saddening.

       Why not, instead of shaming, attacking, and looking down upon our girls for what they wear, lift them up instead. No girl wants to be looked at everyday as if she’s a disgrace.