ROTHENBURGER – School dress codes are needed but they’re hard to get right

The school’s decision incensed her dad, Chris Wilson, who took to social media (which is what we do these days). And who can blame Mr. Wilson for defending his child? He points out that Karis was wearing a black knee-length spaghetti-strap dress over a white turtle neck. It has lace edgings.

So, does lace make a dress into lingerie? If a dress looks like a slip, is it a slip? Is a slip dress a dress or a slip? Does it matter? Does anyone even wear slips as slips anymore? And does it make a difference if a slip, or something that kind of looks like a slip, is worn on the outside when it’s on top of another article of clothing that covers the skin?

Indeed, dress codes can be silly. But they’re a good thing to have. The question in this case is simply whether or not the school dress code is 1. reasonable and 2. was relevant to Karis Wilson’s outfit.

The school follows the district’s student dress code, which references “clothing worn in a way that detracts from the teaching/ learning process.” It’s maddeningly vague.

A teacher and an administrator believed the student’s dress-and-turtleneck wear contravened the code. They made a mistake but I suspect all they were trying to do was conscientiously apply the rules, as foggy as they are.

It’s an excellent example of a well-intended policy that was taken too far. Life is full of rules, though, and schools are no exception. Our opinions on what’s OK and what’s not OK to wear develop over time. Thirty years ago, a female Kam High student made headlines for bearing her midriff. She was told she couldn’t do that and, yes, there was a walkout.

Showing one’s bra straps was, at one time, controversial in the same way bare ankles were once forbidden.

It would be easy to regard this as a gender discrimination issue and it’s true dress codes tend to affect female students more than males. The SD73 policy covers quite a range of situations, though.

For example, students — male and female — aren’t allowed to wear clothing with racist slogans or symbols or that promote the use of controlled substances, or contain vulgarities, or promote violence.

Several years ago, the wearing of black T-shirts was an issue because they were thought to encourage a gang culture.

I think we can agree there should be boundaries on how revealing the clothing is. And can we also agree, no racism, no promoting drugs and violence? If we do, then we agree there’s a need for a dress code, and from there it’s only about the details.

But details are where it gets tricky. What would be too revealing? Some districts even ban jeans with holes. Though the case being made in this instance is that the dress is not underwear, what if it were?

Would Superman be sent home for wearing his underwear outside his tights? Would a male student be allowed to wear a jock strap outside his jeans? The debate lends itself to all kinds of absurd hypotheticals.

When it comes to messages displayed on clothing, even that’s debatable — should a student be prohibited from wearing a Black Lives Matter t-shirt?

Dress codes can be oppressive and it’s hard to keep them up to date with community standards, because community standards are constantly in flux. Therefore, since dress codes are often vague and behind the times, it’s hard to apply them consistently. Which lends itself to unfairness.

There’s no value in demanding the heads of teachers who have the difficult job of enforcing them. Wisely, the district realizes the value of bringing students and parents into the conversation as it struggles to bring code rules up to date.

The current controversy will blow over after SD73 revamps its policy and says it will never happen again, etc. But, of course, it will happen again because of those unavoidable imperfections.

And the process will start over.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.

by Mel Rothenburger

ROTHENBURGER – School dress codes are needed but they’re hard to get right

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