UNDRESSING THE DRESS CODE: The Generation of Women Fighting Back
Despite their uniform intentions in schools, dress codes today have evolved into a weapon being used by society’s young women in a fight against gender inequality.
Written by Analise Bruno | Designed by Lauren Mann | Photographed by Andrew Burke-Stevenson Dress codes were born to scrutinize females. From the classroom to the office, to even the home, women find themselves subjected to the modestimmodest norm. If we show too much or stray too far from convention, we’re trashy. If we cover up and keep it simple we’re prudes with no style. At their core, these guidelines for dressing represent all of how girls feel sexualized, objectified, and silenced. It goes beyond just saying that tube tops and short shorts are inappropriate for school, dress codes have become a form of control. In a time where women are repeatedly treated as secondclass citizens by those in authority, what better means for a movement that calls for intergenerational engagement? As a teen girl myself, I don’t think I’ll ever forget the day my middle school principal had to call all the boys out of the third period to tell them that they had to stop pestering the girls about the dress code. He informed them, face-to-face, that objectifying us—saying our shorts were too short, or that we were dressed “slutty” was a form of harassment. It was a game to them. High school was a bit better in terms of freedom, but I know my experience is merely my own, and with a campus of over 16,000 undergraduates, more cases need to be “undressed.” In the absence of adult engagement, the young girls of today’s society are starting the discussion themselves. To best grasp the complexities of today’s social issues, we should take the time to listen to real stories from real people; so I sat and listened. “I went to a private Jesuit high school and a dress code was required,” said freshmen Ella Conley. “It consisted of a polo shirt and straight-leg khakis. Shoes had to be close-toed and no slippers or boots were allowed.”
47
While anyone could imagine the practicality of this kind of dress, simple but adaptable for all seasons, it certainly seemed restricting. Ella mentioned she didn’t so much mind the uniform, but it was apparent that the issue was enforcement. What was okay for the boys was a detention pass for the girls. “Different genders had different rules. The enforcement of the dress code 100% targeted a specific gender. With the khakis, a lot of women got them from Free People, but they were very light-washed and were deemed “not a khaki color,” resulting in a detention. Meanwhile, men would be wearing khakis that were white, slightly green, and many other colors and it was no big deal. A lot of men were also wearing shirts under their polos, and they would take them off at lunch, the gym, etc. If a woman did that, there probably would have been more resistance.” It seems that despite the intention of the school dress codes to promote a sense of formality and prestige, the guidelines often become soiled by aspects of misogyny. When it is girls who suddenly become the primary targets and the sole reason behind these rules, the issue is systemic. Another student, Amy Crevino, came forward to share her story about how her high school’s code of conduct implemented a relatively loose guideline for in-class apparel but created more strict limitations when it came to athletics,“One issue that I had with my high school’s dress code was that we weren’t allowed to wear just sports bras outside/on the track during athletic periods, whereas boys’ teams were allowed to be shirtless,” Crevino shared. “This upset me because when it was very hot outside, I found it extremely unfair that we were not allowed the ability to cool down that the boys were.”