Student Petition Targets 'Sexist' Dress Code At Sarasota School

SARASOTA, FL — Around 1,200 people have signed a Change.org petition protesting Sarasota High School’s dress code for being “sexist.”

Student Kassidy Saba, who created the petition, said the school began enforcing its dress code Wednesday. She and about 25 other girls at the school received dress code violation notices – she was targeted for bare shoulders – and were sent to the cafeteria.

“We were given the option to have a relative bring a change of clothes or miss a full day's worth of school in (in-school suspension). Both of my parents work full time and I take four (Advanced International Certificate of Education) classes so neither were a viable option for me,” she wrote. “To make use of the valuable learning time I'm missing due to my bare shoulders, I've decided to make this petition for the other young women at SHS experiencing the same issue.”

Saba said there’s a double standard when it comes to the dress code and male and female students; boys and girls aren’t treated equally.

“When schools ban specific items like leggings or midriff-baring tops, it sends a negative message to both genders of the student body. Girls are sometimes told that their clothing is too distracting, and boys can't pay attention,” she wrote. “However, this kind of language is sexist and many anti-dress code advocates point out that it sends a message to the male student body that they are not solely responsible for their actions.”

She also pointed out that it’s easier for a male student to rectify a dress code violation than a female student.

“Females typically have to leave class to go home and change whereas males may need to make minor adjustments. For example, a common item on the school dress code is no baggy pants or vulgar T-shirts. To fix the violation, a student merely has to pull up his pants or wear his T-shirt inside out,” Saba wrote. “However, equally common is the ban on leggings. Female students are frequently sent home because to fix the violation, they have to change. Not only is this embarrassing, but it disrupts her education.”

Megan Rogers, who signed the petition, wrote, “Young women should be able to attend school without having their education interrupter based on the whims of administrators who are offended by teenage female bodies.”

Another petition signer, Olivia Swanson, wrote, “It is actually crazy to me that you would sexualize 14-18 (year-old) girls like this. If you want us to cover up for the benefit of other people who can’t control themselves that is their own issue that needs to be dealt with. … Let’s start teaching people that women aren’t objects and what they wear doesn’t have an effect on other people’s imagination.”

In her petition, Saba said “public school dress codes should be eradicated from the school systems.”

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Instead, “Treating each other with respect should be the main principle of any school, not body-shaming one gender into modest submission fit for traditional patriarchal values," she wrote. "It’s time public schools recognize girls and boys as equals and begin to treat them as equals if this world ever intends to get better. At the end of the day, I want to feel comfortable in my learning environment. School should be a safe place for me and my fellow classmates.”

In an update published to the petition Thursday, Saba said Sarasota High School’s student government has created a dress code committee to work with school staff in redesigning the current dress code.

She also noted that Principal David Jones “has been more than willing to listen to thoughts about the current dress code.” A PDF of the petition with all signatures will be delivered to the principal.

Jones told the Sarasota Herald-Tribune the school recently decided to renew its focus on dress code enforcement and alerted families and students Tuesday. He said about 40 students were sent to the gym or front office for dress code violations.

He also stressed that it’s not a matter of sexism, though he told the Herald-Tribune girls usually get more dress code violations than boys.

"It tends, unfortunately, that this is more of a female issue instead of a guys' issue," Jones said. "I hate it because that gets interpreted as a sexist thing."

Patch has reached out to David Jones for additional information.