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My youngest Child Staged a Protest at PS Today.


Anne in CA
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She protested her  Totally Draconian Dress Code because she feels it penalizes girls for being feminine and puts all responsibility for bad behavior of boys on the girls. She did the whole protest by herself and printed up and taped memes that summarize her feelings all over the school. One teacher (probably the best English teacher in the North State) supported her and taped up her flyers in his classroom. She spent an hour in the principal's office (missing her welding class) and was invited to do a presentation of her beliefs for the school board next month. 

 

While I think there are bigger issues in the world, I am concerned about the rise of patriarchy in modern culture and I know this is the part that affects her the most right now. I think she will have bigger issues with patriarchy in the future, but I am not sorry she is combating the little piece she can.

 

I remember when I was first considering enrolling her and the school was so happy to have her lovely test scores. I wonder if they think it's worth it now...

 

I love so much about this post! Of course, I hate that it was necessary, but what a fantastic young woman you have there!

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Well, good for her! That took courage, and it sounds as though she went about her protest in an appropriate way that got her some adult support. I hope the time spent in the principal's office wasn't punitive. If she was invited to attend the school board meeting, I'm guessing it wasn't. Tackling the "smaller" problems in our lives builds confidence to address the larger issues later. Please let us know how the meeting goes.

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Well, good for her! That took courage, and it sounds as though she went about her protest in an appropriate way that got her some adult support. I hope the time spent in the principal's office wasn't punitive. If she was invited to attend the school board meeting, I'm guessing it wasn't. Tackling the "smaller" problems in our lives builds confidence to address the larger issues later. Please let us know how the meeting goes.

The time was not punitive, fortunately her school is pretty intellectual and the principal and vice principal took time from their day to talk to her for that hour. She told them that the dress code is very different from other schools (they said they didn't make the dress code, the school board did) and she said it wasn't fair how it was often applied by teachers on different days, giving examples. Both of them agreed that if her examples happened the way she remembers them that they were not fair.

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Awesome!

 

Dress codes at homeschool groups have done lasting damage to my girls. None of us care what the actual dress code is, whether it's "Don't show up naked" or "Don't wear a tank top two days in a row. You can only wear your hair in a ponytail once a week. On Wednesdays we wear pink. You can only wear jeans or track pants on Friday." (Mean Girls, LOL!) or even that the uniform is a blue feathered chicken suit. What is wrong is when it's phrased so that girls don't "distract" boys and also seems to be applied in such a way that only pretty girls with b00ks are a problem.

 

Looking foreward to the updates here!

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The time was not punitive, fortunately her school is pretty intellectual and the principal and vice principal took time from their day to talk to her for that hour. She told them that the dress code is very different from other schools (they said they didn't make the dress code, the school board did) and she said it wasn't fair how it was often applied by teachers on different days, giving examples. Both of them agreed that if her examples happened the way she remembers them that they were not fair.

 

Yay to the administration for handling the situation well, too.

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I am still curious about the actual dress code. OP, can you tell us some of the current rules?

The main rules that she is protesting are the ones applied to cleavage which are only applied to "busty" girls. She feels that since boys can walk around without shirts at all it is wrong that on hot days some girls can't wear a tank top outside in the sun.  The whole dress code is evidently more strict than any other school district in NorCal, but again, I can't find it online and we signed a copy of the parent handbook, but I have no clue where that is because we did extensive remodeling this winter.

 

Not only is the dress code not online at this time, which it should be, but the copies of her protest arguments were taken down from classrooms last night after the school was closed. Only someone with a key could have done it. The janitor and the principal both claim they did not do so...but the flyers that teachers placed in their own classrooms are gone. 

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Good grief. Girls with big boobs can't wear tank tops??? What in the world? How does the admin explain that to a busty girl?

They "explain" it by saying that it is "immodest." Boys will see an immodestly dressed girl and "be distracted,' which is code for having lustful and improper thoughts, and that is all the fault of the girl who dares to have big boobs.

 

On my Kindle, so no emojis, but you can insert your own angry/head-banging-against wall/makes-no-sense-to-me emojis.

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I must be living under a rock  because I have never seen the 'so boys aren't distracted line'.

 

 

Is there room under your rock for me? I want to travel back in time to long before I ever heard of this, too.

For the record, my oldest was eight. I was terrified that my TODDLER's dress would ride up above her knees in the nursery, so I made her wear tights, even on hot days.

I'm way too much of a rule-follower, and I was still trying to fit in and be what I was taught that a "good" Christian homeschooler would do.

But yes, every dress code we've been subject to mentioned not being a distraction to boys or causing them to stumble. To this day, the word "defraud" makes me physically ill.

 

 

 

Good grief. Girls with big boobs can't wear tank tops??? What in the world? How does the admin explain that to a busty girl?

  

It's so sad it's almost funny. But I gotta give them credit for simply saying "You're figure is too mature to wear that here" instead of making up some extra BS rule for everybody

 

 

They "explain" it by saying that it is "immodest." Boys will see an immodestly dressed girl and "be distracted,' which is code for having lustful and improper thoughts, and that is all the fault of the girl who dares to have big boobs.

On my Kindle, so no emojis, but you can insert your own angry/head-banging-against wall/makes-no-sense-to-me emojis.

Yes, this. :rolleyes:

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The main rules that she is protesting are the ones applied to cleavage which are only applied to "busty" girls. She feels that since boys can walk around without shirts at all it is wrong that on hot days some girls can't wear a tank top outside in the sun.  The whole dress code is evidently more strict than any other school district in NorCal, but again, I can't find it online and we signed a copy of the parent handbook, but I have no clue where that is because we did extensive remodeling this winter.

 

Not only is the dress code not online at this time, which it should be, but the copies of her protest arguments were taken down from classrooms last night after the school was closed. Only someone with a key could have done it. The janitor and the principal both claim they did not do so...but the flyers that teachers placed in their own classrooms are gone.

 

Ooooh now we have a mystery, too! Please keep the updates coming, and hug your DD for me! I hope she can prevent girls from feeling like mine were made to feel.

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I must be living under a rock because I have never seen the 'so boys aren't distracted line'.

That was actually in our hand book in high school in the late 80s.

 

ETA: public school

Edited by Barb_
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The main rules that she is protesting are the ones applied to cleavage which are only applied to "busty" girls. She feels that since boys can walk around without shirts at all it is wrong that on hot days some girls can't wear a tank top outside in the sun.  

 

So the boys are allowed to be shirtless at school? And tank tops are allowed for girls, but no visible cleavage?

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Is there room under your rock for me? I want to travel back in time to long before I ever heard of this, too.

For the record, my oldest was eight. I was terrified that my TODDLER's dress would ride up above her knees in the nursery, so I made her wear tights, even on hot days.

I'm way too much of a rule-follower, and I was still trying to fit in and be what I was taught that a "good" Christian homeschooler would do.

But yes, every dress code we've been subject to mentioned not being a distraction to boys or causing them to stumble. To this day, the word "defraud" makes me physically ill.

 

 

 

It's so sad it's almost funny. But I gotta give them credit for simply saying "You're figure is too mature to wear that here" instead of making up some extra BS rule for everybody

 

 

 

Yes, this. :rolleyes:

I think of my religion/faith as being very conservative. modesty conversations rarely have to do with dress. Or distracting boys.

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No one gets to wear shirts without sleeves and a collar* to school at the school my son will be attending in the fall. Tank tops and boys without shirts were also not allowed at the public schools here in the 1990s. I'm not sure about now. I agree that if tanks are allowed, everyone should be able to wear them. But honestly I'm fine just requiring shirts and sleeves. For boys and girls of all sizes.

 

*i think the only exception on the collar thing is that girls get to wear any dress or blouse that would be appropriate in a business office- they aren't limited to just collared shirts or shirtdresses. Which seems fine to me.

Edited by LucyStoner
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No tank tops are supposedly allowed for girls, but only girls with visible cleavage are getting "dress coded".

 

Ah, I see. Thanks for the clarification. That is ridiculous (not the tank top rule, but the inconsistency).

Edited by MercyA
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I have a "busty girl". Who has a "busty mom".  What amuses me (in a not-actually-funny way) is that my kid would look ridiculous in the polos that are part of our (public) school uniform.

 

Instead, she goes about her homeschool life in tank tops, usually with bra straps peeking out.  Like her mom.  :tongue_smilie:

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Is think knowingly and purposely targeting busty girls would be ripe with sexual harrassment litigation.

 

Not easy, I think.

 

First, one has to prove that there is actual prejudice happening. It would require a lot of documenting, which generally doesn't happen. Most often it comes down to he-said-she-said.

 

Second, IME, at least here in the deep, rural south, there's still a lot of systemic misogyny. Most people who are like that don't even realize they are and would be deeply offended if one suggested such a thing. They consider themselves "upholding godly standards." They really are blind.

 

So...they are not "knowingly" targeting, in that, they really have deluded themselves into thinking they're doing the right thing.

 

Also, you have a good chance of getting a judge that takes such a view, and then you're out of luck.

 

Fighting this kind of attitude is hard. Even though (at least where I am) sexual harassment and misogyny like this is not uncommon, litigation is.

 

All the more reason why what Anne's dd did is so commendable!

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The south is full of bikinis and tank tops and short shorts. While there are certainly people with these attitudes, you can walk down literally any street and see there's a lot more people that obviously think that's nuts.

 

Also, it doesn't matter if they knowingly offend or are offended by having their stupid pointed out to them. If a guy pinches my ass because he genuinely thinks he should be allowed to and that I should feel flattered - his feelings and opinion don't matter. He was still wrong and I'm within rights to let him know to knock it off.

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I agree fighting the attitude is difficult and I have no issue with her dd's protest. im just saying there is a LOT of evidence literally walking around in the south that most people do not hold the views Aura suggests is so common as to be unavoidable.

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The main rules that she is protesting are the ones applied to cleavage which are only applied to "busty" girls. She feels that since boys can walk around without shirts at all it is wrong that on hot days some girls can't wear a tank top outside in the sun.  The whole dress code is evidently more strict than any other school district in NorCal, but again, I can't find it online and we signed a copy of the parent handbook, but I have no clue where that is because we did extensive remodeling this winter.

 

Not only is the dress code not online at this time, which it should be, but the copies of her protest arguments were taken down from classrooms last night after the school was closed. Only someone with a key could have done it. The janitor and the principal both claim they did not do so...but the flyers that teachers placed in their own classrooms are gone. 

 

Wait, boys can walk around without shirts while in school?

 

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Wait, boys can walk around without shirts while in school?

 

During school hours they often take off their shirts for PE and Agricultural classes that are outside in the hot sun. They don't do it inside the school itself, other than they gym, but girls who go around outside during school hours with only tank tops risk getting "dress coded" if they are busty. 

 

I am surprised that most schools don't offer welding???? I thought that was very standard. 

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