The other night, I sat at my desk browsing the web, when I came across an article talking about girl’s dress codes in high schools. Dress codes are enforced in high schools all over the country, and girls more commonly than boys have more to worry about when it comes to what they put on before heading to class. A seventh grader was called out by her teacher in front of her entire class because her shirt was thought to be too revealing. Another student was forced to wear a “shame suit” for violating her school’s dress code. The suit included a pair of sweats, and a t-shirt reading, “dress code violation” in large, distracting letters. Why is it that women’s bodies are so commonly objectified not only in the media, but in schools?
Upon reading this article, I whipped out the SAU student handbook and skimmed it. looking for any information I could about a dress code. I found nothing of the sort for both males and females alike. Upon some further research, I discovered that generally most colleges do not enforce any sort of student dress code. For women particularly, no dress code can be quite a relief. Worries of being forced to change into your gym clothes, or being called out based on clothing choices cease to exist. Unfortunately, problems can still arise when it comes to women and their fashion choices. In a perfect world, women would wear shorts and a tank top, or a strapless dress confidently and without any worry of receiving unwanted attention. Sadly, this isn’t always the case. Women who chose to dress in what might be considered more revealing clothing might unintentionally send a message that they are seeking attention from others. Catcalls, and hollering from passersbys are still a common occurrence, but what can we as students do about this? To start, educate friends on the fact that just because someone is dressed in what they might consider “attention-seeking”, doesn’t mean that the wearer is seeking attention. It’s okay to like to feel sexy, and sometimes feeling sexy comes with wanting to look so as well. Women shouldn’t be afraid to rock their favorite crop top or little black dress. Because we are adults, it’s your body, this is college, and we can wear what we want to. (Photo credit: Zuzmy).