Are School Dress Codes Sexist?

Last year, Maggie Sunseri, 16, took a stand against her school’s strict – and sexist – dress code. Here, she reveals why these clothing calls are less about learning and more about double standards and dangerous messages.

- Maggie Sunseri

Last year, a girl in my class was sent to the principal’s office for violating the school dress code. Hearing that, you probably picture her showing up to class in a skin-tight micro mini or a super low-cut top. But she was simply wearing jeans and a cardigan over a tank.

Her so-called violation? The fact her collarbone was peeking out from beneath her sweater. And, in my public high school in Woodford County, Ky., exposed collarbones are forbidden. Same goes for exposed midriffs, shorts and skirts above the knee, leggings, sleeveless tops and pants with holes.

For as long as I can remember, students at my school have complained about the dress code. Hidden under the guise of “dressing for success,” the code is meant to create a “distraction-free learning zone” by banning certain styles of clothing.

Rules are rules, I get it. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this dress code has nothing to do with clothes.

It wasn’t about keeping teenagers from wearing whatever they wanted to defy authority or to fit in. It was about teaching young women to be ashamed of their bodies – and that they are only to be respected if they cover up. And it’s unfair.

I firmly believe that if you care about something enough to complain about it, then you must be willing to work to change it. So, for my film class’s final project last year, I produced a documentary on my school’s rules about what we wear to class.