Dress Codes Persuasive Speech

Dress codes and uniforms have been around since the 1900’s. However, skin shaming has been around since the 1600’s. In Victorian ages, men would gasp at the sight of an ankle. Now people wear shorts that cover the same as one’s underwear. As times change so do social norms. In 2015 it is perfectly acceptable to see a person walking down the street in short shorts and a crop top. It is now accepted that people’s bodies are not meant to be criticized as if they are no more than a sexual object. However, dress codes in schools are teaching students that their bodies are objects meant to be viewed. Having people at young ages exposed to such self and other’s sexualzation restricts their ability to see themselves and others in anything but a sexual
In first grade boys and girls are focused on if their mom packed them their favorite fruit snacks than if they can see each other’s shoulders. When a child is told that his or her body must be covered it causes a curiosity that would not have been there if not for it being forced upon them. Sophia Herbst of Huffington Post says dress codes “teaches [girls] to view [themselves] in a sexualized gaze...middle-school girls are worrying about if someone can see down their shirts if they lean forward” (Herbst). A young girl, or any young person for that matter, should be focusing on their education and not their clothing while at school. Furthermore, he one phase always associated with dress codes is “it is distracting boys”. When a young girl is told that exposing parts of their bodies is “distracting” it forces them to view their bodies in a more sexualizied way. Susanna Schrobsdorff, a writer for Time Magazine, wrote that in elementary schools “girls…[are] being singled out for wearing tank tops or short skirts” (Schrobsdorff). A girl in elementary school is not wearing a tank top to look sexy or to gain attention from her male classmates. When
While that type of environment seems very positive the execution contains major flaws. The same goal can be achieved without over sexualzation, sexism, and promotion of rape culture. The idea of a dress code is not negative whatsoever, but if overdone they can become ridiculous, reprehensible, and risible. A dress code is not creating a “professional” environment if some students are being forced “to wear “dress code” sweatshirt and pants” (Schrobsdorff). If dress codes are attempting to help kids adapt to the unspoken dress code of the business world then they are failing to see the futuristic and forward thinking of the modern