By Paige Dance | Copy Editor
Fifty years ago, Gabrielino High School’s current dress code would have been acceptable. However, in our ever changing society, this sexist and outdated policy is no longer justifiable.
The Gabrielino Student Handbook goes through what is not allowed, with majority of the rules being targeted at feminine clothing, such as no “revealing tank tops” and “spaghetti strap tops with a strap of less than one inch from front to back.” If these rules are violated, students can be forced to change clothing and sentenced to detention, Saturday school, or parent conferences.
The education of girls is consistently proven to be less important than the education of males when girls are pulled out of class and forced to change so that we are not a distraction. This old fashioned mindset is not just found at Gabrielino, as many schools like Temple City High School and Arcadia High School have the same dress code policies. There is a clear, dated mind-set of schools, in the area and throughout the nation, that attack girls and the way that they choose to dress.
“If our parents let us walk out of the house in it, then it shouldn’t be a problem,” senior Wendolyne Camacho stated.
Girls are targeted for showing too much of their shoulder or stomach, yet boys are allowed to wear tank tops that show more skin than girls ever do. There are clear double standards within the school’s dress code, as the majority of rules are targeted at girls. While there appear to be quite a few clothing standards for males, only a few are actually applicable and enforced, such as the no-hat rule.
According to Shauna Pomerantz, a girlhood expert of Brock University that can be found on the National Education Association website, “It’s saying the male response is your fault. Your body is causing negativity.”
Wearing clothing that shows our shoulders and our collarbones should not be considered a distraction. Female students should be able to wear what they choose without having the fear of having to wear P.E. clothes for the rest of the day because their outfit were deemed to be a disturbance.
Moving forward, there needs to be less restrictions on girls and what they choose to wear at school, as it becomes a disruption to the individual. The dress code needs to be more balanced as to how it is enforced with the boys versus the girls at Gabrielino so that girls are not targeted for skin showing while boys can do the same.
