Uniforms In Public Schools And The First Amendment: A Constitutional Analysis

The majority of public school students believe uniforms interfere with their first amendment rights. When wearing uniforms, students feel their creativity and ability to express themselves are being affected, when in fact uniforms may curb negative behavior associated with student dressing. This allows the student to focus on school work instead of being distracted by the clothing. In public school, especially in urban areas, there is the fear of gang-related activity, bullying, and school violence. When reading Uniforms in Public Schools and the First Amendment: A Constitutional Analysis written by Harold W. Mitchell and John C. Knechtle it focused on the difference between private schools and public schools to see if there were any solutions that wouldn't need to pull more money from the government, this began the testing of uniforms in public schools. This allowed the government to reform the public schools without having to spend money. Of course with the addition of uniforms in public schools, there were complaints. Students, parents, and even teachers questioned the uniform policy. Many made claim that the uniform was unnecessary and didn't help. Others made claim that the uniform was actually a violation against their first amendment rights. When reading Uniforms in Public Schools and the First
Students no longer had to worry about the clothes they wore. In the instance of tardiness and gang-related activity, school uniforms had a simple solution. The student doesn't have to spend time sorting through clothes so they don't arrive to school late. As for gang-related activity, schools are less likely to suspend students for wearing bandanas, although some students don't see bandanas as gang-related, and just as a fashion