Equality is the newest trend, so shouldn’t that extend to high school dress policies? Boys are free to show up to school in “chubbies” and “bro tanks”, flaunting their thigh tanlines, nipples, and excessive amounts of armpit hair. If one of the main reasons why girls can’t dress comfortably is because it is distracting to boys to show skin, is it not distracting to girls to have someone’s underarm squirrel in their face?  It is unfair and unjust to tell girls they can’t show their skin because of another person’s preference. The last year should have taught the world one big lesson: it is a woman’s right to choose what she does with her body, and school policies should follow that. Each day that the current dress code stays in place we are telling the young women of America that their bodies are not meant to be seen and are furthering the insecurities that are already embedded in the teenage years. If we are so set on teaching girls to love themselves and love each other, then we should allow them to do so at all times, including on school campuses. High school is a time to explore who you are and find different ways to express yourself; the dress code infringes on teenager’s right to the freedom of expression. The double standards have run too deep and there is no way to balance the way a girl dresses to that of a boy, so the only solution is to redesign the dress code.

-Rebecca Smith and Molly Odell