The Debate over School Uniforms

After several not-so-great experiences I have had in the school district, I think I have come up with a long-term solution to increasing amounts of disrespect and subordination both among the students and the faculty. I grew up in a parochial school in New York City. In St. Andrews we had to wear school uniforms. The memories of my childhood aren't filled with unforgivable actions towards me, and people picking on each other about what clothes they are wearing. The most trouble I ever remember getting myself into was during the first or second grade when I lost one of my phonetics books. Never do I remember fights in school or any threat of violence. Considering the fact that this was a different time, it was only a few years ago. I personally feel that uniforms can help to create a more structured environment.
Throughout the State of Florida, numerous school boards have been attempting to standardize the clothing that students wear. The school superintendents who are in favor of uniforms argue that the children who wear them will experience many benefits. Critics feel that the use of uniforms will strip identity, stifle creativity, and unnecessarily burden the families that cannot afford them. They argue that the use of uniforms has already been implemented in several long-standing social environments. The penal system uses uniforms to brand those persons who are incarcerated. Likewise, the military also uses them to separate and remove the individualism inside of the soldier. In both cases, "individual identity is stripped away and the subject is forced to conform to the same outward appearance as every other subject." Another problem that may surface due to the implementation of school uniforms is the suppression of the individual's creativity and expression. Many students' express who they are through the way they dress. If a teenager wants to show the rest of the world that he loves Jesus, then he or she might wear a T-shirt that states a positive view