Hello my name is Ambrea Carnes and I’m currently a student at Statesboro High School. I’m here to voice my concerns about the outdated dresscode that is sexualizing young girls and promoting rape culture. Along with not keeping up with the current times. 

Did you know that Bulloch County District dresscode states “the fingertip length of shorts and skirts starts being enforced at the 4th grade level”? Why are girls no older than 10 years of age being told that their legs are sexual objects?

It has also stated that “we cannot have tattoos or facial piercings that are distracting”. I myself have a septum piercing that some people do not agree with  and although they do not like the idea they do not ask me to take it out because it is “distracting”. I also wanna state that I am bisexual which means I find both males and females attractive and that I would date someone of the same sex.

This being said I nor my fellow male students find the following distracting : shoulders, thighs, armpits, collarbones, belly buttons or nipple prints. These are all things we as humans have. Female students are being told they are not important, their comfort is distracting, and their bodies are not their own. We have enough of that going on in the news. For example, being called a host or host body. 

Girls. Young girls that are being told that because the length of their shorts they cannot go to class. Why are we putting all the blame on female students that cannot change the way the way puberty has or has not hit them? 

In Boulder County, Colorado, sub committee of The District Accountability Committee, led by member, Nicole Rushpowell said, “All students have the right to an acquitable education and should be able to dress and style their hair for school in a manner that expresses individuality without fear of unnecessary discipline or body shaming.” They also decided that the dresscode requires them to wear a top, bottom, and footwear and prohibits items that expose “private areas” 

Another quote from, Jamilla Richmond, a member of the District Accountablility committees executive board and founder of Parents of Color Council states, “We don’t need people coming up to kids and measuring the lengths of their skirts and penalizing them for people being born with different physical attributes.”

I’m not saying all the rules in the handbook are unneeded but, they need to be acclimated to the times we are living in today. According to a 2020 study written in part by Todd A. Mitchel, a professor at the University of New Hampshire who has researched the litigation of dresscodes in public schools, “The focus on covering girls bodies contributes to the very problem the dresscodes seek to address the inappropriate sexualization of female students.” When looking at the dresscodes of 25 New Hampshire public schools, researchers found that most high policy’s specifically target girls. Such as, covering breast’s, cleavage, collarbones, and shoulders. It is noted that some of the garments prohibited in many school policies such as, tank tops and strapless shirts, are prohibited because they are considered “sexy”. 

Please reevaluate and update the dresscode and follow the example set by Boulder County high schools. Do not make me an object. I am a sixteen year old girl and I have a voice that I will continue to use until I am heard.