![]() However, it is worth noting that courts have been less consistent about applying antidiscrimination laws to grooming policies, and your protections may vary greatly based on where you live. In 2018, the ACLU and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund raised legal concerns when a Florida school turned away a Black first grader for wearing locs on his first day of school. ![]() Notably, dress and grooming policies that prohibit certain hairstyles – including hair extensions, braids, or locs – often disproportionately punish Black students and are rooted in racist standards of professionalism and respectability. Moreover, Black students and other students of color are often more harshly disciplined and targeted for dress code enforcement based on racist stereotypes about proper appearance and behavior. The ACLU has expressed concerns about potential discrimination where a school targeted dress code sweeps against girl students, and where a school district suspended girl athletes for practicing in sports bras, while allowing boy athletes to practice without shirts. For example, public school dress codes that ban “cleavage” or “bra straps” – or impose restrictions on the length of shorts or skirts – are often targeted against girls and invites unnecessary and excessive policing of girls’ bodies in schools. Here are a few of the basics on what public schools can and cannot do when it comes to dress codes:Įven when a dress code appears to be “neutral” on its face, a public school may violate students’ civil rights by targeting enforcement of its dress code against certain groups of students. Here’s the short answer: While public schools are allowed to have dress codes and uniform policies, they cannot discriminate against certain students or censor student expression. You may be left wondering where the line is between a permissible dress code and unlawful discrimination. Black girls, in particular, are often seen as less innocent and more adult-like, aggressive and threatening, and needing less support and protection – often known as the “adultification bias.” Moreover, students of color – and especially Black girls and other girls of color – are disproportionately targeted for dress code enforcement because of intersecting race and gender stereotypes. Such policies also may punish LGBTQ+ students for not conforming with rigid and binary gender norms about proper behavior and appearance. School dress codes, for example, may reflect the sexist and harmful view that girls’ bodies are inherently vulgar or inappropriate, that boys will be “distracted” by girls’ bodies, and that girls’ dress and appearance require more regulation than that of boys.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |