The dress code at DePue highschool needs to change, it is sexist and demeaning to all young girls who get publicly embarrassed by staff when they wear something as simple as a cropped tee that shows nothing but their arms and their belly buttons. Shoulders, stomachs, and thighs are not sexual organs! We are kids! If you get “distracted” by what we wear then that is on you, it's not our fault that you think like that, stop treating us like objects and making us feel ashamed of ourselves for wanting to express ourselves with our clothing. Why should young girls have to cover up and hide themselves just because boys can control themselves. Schools should be teaching boys to control themselves instead of policing young girls wardrobes. Yes, we understand that there are limits and things that we shouldn’t wear, but when we wear something that doesn't show any of our sexual organs then what is the problem? Why are girls being called out in front of other students in the middle of class just because they wore a tank top and showed their shoulders? Why do girls have to be pulled out of class, interrupting their learning just so that boys can learn without being distracted? It's completely sexist and wrong. Young girls are being taught that their bodies are far more sexual than boys’ bodies, we are being objectified. This all plays into rape culture, if young girls are taught that their bodies are sexual and distracting to the boys around them and that they need to cover up in order for nothing bad to happen to them then theyll blame themselves if theyre ever sexually harrassed because if they had just simply wore more clothes nothing would have happened to them right? Wrong.  Not only do dress codes target girls, but they can also target girls with a specific body type, for example a girl who was more developed would get dress coded for wearing a tank top, whereas a girl who wasn't as developed would probably be overlooked. Not to mention that sometimes girls can't control how our clothes look. For example, boys’ shorts are made longer, they’re straps are made thicker, and they have no bra straps or cleavage to try and hide because most don't have breasts. All we want is to be treated with dignity, equality, and respect. Just because we’re young doesn't mean we shouldn't have a voice, girls should be allowed to wear whatever they want without being judged and disciplined for it. We understand that there are limits but don't persecute us and stop us from learning just so that boys can have an interrupted day without any distractions, teach them to control themselves instead of teaching girls to cover up! Young girls all over the country have realized this. We just now understood that we can speak up on these issues, stop sexualizing us, stop treating us like objects, and just give us the respect that we deserve. Please help us reform the dress code by signing our petition. All we want is for us and young generations of girls to grow up in an environment free of judgement and objectification.