My Outfit is Not My Consent

        

What is one rule that is started in schools and effects girls throughout their entire life—dress code. Dress codes are rules set by the Board of Education that define what is proper and inappropriate for students, mostly girl to wears at school.  

The girls have more rules because to some, a shoulder is too distracting to the young boys going through puberty when in fact it is only distracting to the adults who need a power grab. This being such an issue will follow girls later in life and may even lead to sexual harassment later in high school, college and public spaces. The rates of sexual harassment connect to the dress codes set in middle school because they set a stereotype for girls of what clothes are “appropriate” and what clothes can be considered “asking for it.” 

The way a woman dresses is everything in the eyes of man, it finds her guilt, and decides the man's excuse, “The idea that clothing has anything to do with assault is global and persistent. In 1999, the Supreme Court of Appeals in Rome ruled that a woman wearing jeans couldn’t be raped, reasoning that a rapist couldn’t forcibly remove a pair of pants.” 

In many situations where a man is consistently following a woman, she will be asked “well what were you wearing to make her not stop following you” Instead of asking the man “why were you not leaving the lady alone, what made you think you had the right to follow her and make her feel uncomfortable?”  

If a girl was wearing shorts too short, they would use that as the man's excuse and put the blame on the girl, it has been done countless times and is an issue in the system that must be fixed! 

 

These are the exact same rules that apply to dress codes in middle schools. A boy is only restrained from wearing a tank top and shirts with foul language on them. Girls cannot wear tanks, shorts/skirts must be no shorter than knee-length, their bra strap cannot show, their jeans cannot be too tight—all to stop from distracting the boys and men in the school from getting their education because they do not yet know how to control their body when biology comes into play. “Clothing reflects the self — the identity, the material practice we engage with in daily life (Lynch, 2007; Woodward, 2008). One’s wardrobe is known to be an extension of the diverse aspects of one’s beliefs and constructs social identity (Hill, 2005; Woodward, 2008).” 

But, if we shame and send girls to the office and call home and make them change their outfits, is that not disrupting the girl's education? Or does that not matter as much as the boys? 

This is sexualizing girls and their bodies at an age when they don’t even know what sex is! This is why when a girl is harassed or even unfortunately assaulted, the fault is automatically put on her and her outfit, what she was wearing that cause the man to harm her.  

When we blame the female and not the male, it will give young boys a sense of entitlement and will make them think they are in the clear. Because most girls will not speak up when they should. Why? Because who is going to believe the girl who was wearing a short skirt? 

My outfit is not my consent. 

This is an issue that must be addressed now, some say the dress code is fine how it is and does not need to be changed, the education system is fine, and no one is getting less of an education because of it. But that is incorrect, girls are constantly getting gipped of classroom time and lessons because her bra straps were visible through her four-inch tank top strap on a day where it is 97 degrees out.  

Taking this step to fix the dress codes is the first to fixing society. It is the first step to giving a sense of safety and security to the young girls of the next generation. This is the step that is needed to protect our daughters and grandchildren.  

We need to change the way the school system has power over a piece of clothing, and not by enforcing uniforms, by teaching boys and girls that at a young age, bodies are not to be sexualized. Teach them all that one day biology will tell you something, but it is no reason to not have self-control and make just the girls change. 

This is a flunk in the systems, educational, judicial, and society that need to be fixed. A girl's clothes should not determine if she is to be harassed or not. An outfit is not an invitation and cannot be the cause of anything that happens. Yes, some outfits may get attention, but glares and looks are just something humans must realize need some more self-control, but what is not a reaction is how one treats a girl because if her clothing—that is a choice. 

We need to teach our children to not make that choice and to instead help someone if they are feeling uncomfortable, it is just the next step to fixing societies view on sexual harassment.