It's August, and school is almost back in session! Today, let's engage in an essential discussion that has come up repeatedly at PTA meetings and school boards alike: dress codes. While schools often justify dress codes as preparing students for the workplace or preventing distractions, many of these policies have significant repercussions on students' learning, self-worth, and sense of belonging. These rules frequently enforce different standards for appearance and attire based on the binary conception of gender.
Reinforcing restrictive binary gender norms in school dress codes can unintentionally exclude students whose gender presentations and bodies don't align with white, Western, cisheteronormative ideas of masculinity and femininity. Together, let's delve into the complexities of gendered dress codes and their implications for students.
Dress codes often enforce binary gender norms & presentations.
More often than not, gendered dress codes reinforce normative behaviors, appearances, and values assigned to socially constructed categories of "proper" cisgendered, heteronormative masculinity and femininity. This promotes a limited and rigid understanding of gender and sexuality, restricting self-expression and identity exploration.
Many policies oversexualize and shame young women’s bodies, or restrict their options for comfort and functionality.
Dress codes frequently police the bodies of girls and young women. Rules for the length, style, or fit of clothes often send messages that women’s bodies are “distractions” to male peers, and perpetuate harmful stereotypes. Dress code regulations can also contribute to shaming girls based on body size or shape.
This can make girls feel hyper-conscious or ashamed of their bodies when they deserve space to focus on learning.
Girls should also have the freedom to learn, move, and play on equal terms as their male peers. This includes the freedom to opt for shorts or pants when they want to.
Dress codes that limit young women's choices in clothing can hinder their comfort and self-expression, reinforcing traditional gender norms and limiting their opportunities for growth.
Rules about the appearances of young men and boys frequently uphold narrow conceptions of masculinity.
Dress codes for male students can enforce restrictive, often classist ideas of masculinity. By policing hair length and prohibiting makeup, hair coloring, and nail polish, these policies limit boys' exploration of gender beyond traditional norms.
Gendered dress codes can negatively impact trans & nonbinary students.
Many rules force nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, or genderfluid students to conform to binary gender expression standards, negating their identities and causing harm. For transgender students, some dress code rules can trigger dysphoria and invalidate their identities, hindering their emotional well-being.
Dress codes create unequal impacts under "equal" rules…
Dress codes are more heavily enforced for girls than for boys, and disproportionately impact girls of color, trans girls, and gender non-conforming students. Additionally, disparities are often observed in how frequently both women and girls with larger bodies and Black women and girls are targeted by dress code enforcement.
The rules are not only applied unequally, but can cause lasting impacts on a student’s education and opportunities - contributing to economic and social inequities in the long run.
...which especially impacts Black women & girls.
Dress codes can harbor insidious anti-Black racial attitudes, including those that manifest in the over-sexualization and adultification of Black girls. Adultification refers to the harmful perception of Black girls as less innocent and more mature than their white peers from an early age.
Consequently, young Black women face disproportionately higher suspension rates due in part to disciplinary dress codes. One study found that DC schools suspend Black girls at nearly 21x the rate of white girls (NWLC, 2018, Crenshaw, 2015). This systemically impacts educational experiences and opportunities for Black women, contributing to both gender-based and racial inequities.
Many dress code policies pressurize adherence to white, Western frameworks for gender presentation.
The diverse expressions of gender across all cultures should be considered in the creation of more inclusive dress codes. Involve voices from diverse cultural communities to ensure nuanced review of all rules.
For example, here are some ways that hair policies alone can be exclusionary:
Rules that enforce short hair length for men can both prohibit culturally significant styles for Native American or Sikh students, and exclude Black students who wear afros, locs, twists, or braids.
The wearing of religious head coverings, such as hijabs, turbans, yarmulkes, or headscarves, should be allowed without restriction.
Bans on facial hair can exclude students who, for cultural and religious reasons, cannot shave.
Addressing the gendered impacts of dress codes is crucial for creating more inclusive and equitable educational environments.
Merely ignoring unfair policy isn't enough. By challenging exclusionary policies and recognizing their harmful effects, we can work towards fostering a safe and supportive space for students of all gender identities or presentations. We challenge you to raise your voice and advocate for dress codes that both embrace diversity and empower students to express their authentic selves freely.
SOURCES
https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/when-school-dress-codes-discriminate
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/federal-appeals-court-says-title-ix-bans-discrimination-school-dress-codes
https://www.edweek.org/leadership/do-school-dress-codes-discriminate-against-girls/2018/08
https://19thnews.org/2022/01/school-dress-code-challenges/
https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/planned-parenthood-new-hampshire-action-fund/blog/school-dress-codes-perpetuate-sexism-racism-and-transphobia
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