What Does the Bill of Rights Mean for Our Uniform?

South Africa's Constitution is built on the principles of human dignity, equality and freedom. Section 9 of the Bill of Rights states that everyone is equal before the law and is entitled to equal protection and benefit of the law. It also prohibits unfair discrimination on grounds including sex and gender. Section 10 further protects everyone's inherent dignity.

These principles should not disappear when a learner walks through the school gates.

We are not claiming that the Bill of Rights gives every learner an automatic right to wear whatever clothing they want. Schools have the authority to establish uniform rules in order to support school identity, order and practical administration. That authority, however, is not unlimited. Uniform rules must be consistent with the Constitution and must be applied in a way that respects equality, dignity and non-discrimination.

The important distinction is between a school's power to set a rule and its obligation to apply that rule fairly. A school may decide which uniform options are approved, but it should not enforce those options differently for learners in comparable circumstances solely because of their gender, unless that difference can be justified in a constitutionally sound way. A rule can therefore be formally the same for everyone while its available choices or enforcement still create unequal treatment.

At Queens High, boys are permitted to choose between pants and shorts throughout the year, while girls' choice between trousers and skirts is restricted depending on the season. That creates a gender-based difference in the choices available to learners.

So we ask:

If two students are expected to follow the same school uniform, why should their freedom to choose between approved uniform options depend on their gender?

The Department of Basic Education's National Guidelines on School Uniforms state that School Governing Bodies should take the circumstances of their school community into account and should be sensitive to age and gender when designing uniforms.

The Department has also stated that although determining a school's uniform falls within the School Governing Body's functions, those decisions must be consultative, constitutional and human-rights-compliant, and must not discriminate against learners.

This is why the argument that “it is tradition” should not end the conversation.

Tradition can explain why a rule exists. It does not answer whether the rule remains fair today or whether it is being applied consistently with every learner's equality and dignity.

If the school can maintain its uniform standards while allowing boys a year-round choice between pants and shorts, then it is reasonable to ask why girls cannot have an equivalent choice between trousers and skirts.

We are not asking for fewer rules. We are asking for equal rules and equal application of those rules.

We are not asking the school to abandon its uniform or its identity. We are asking it to examine whether a gender-based difference in uniform choice is consistent with the values of equality and dignity that South Africa's Constitution places at the heart of our democracy.

A school should be a place where girls learn that their voices matter, that equality is real and that unfairness can be questioned respectfully.

If we teach the Bill of Rights in our classrooms, we should also expect its principles of equality and dignity to be reflected in the rules we make and in the way those rules are applied.