Indianapolis, IN

Tue 26 June 2007

So, I’m thinking about school uniforms. Recently Indianapolis Public School officials voted to adopt school uniforms for next year. I don’t see what the big deal is. I used to work in a middle school, and even I was tired of seeing thongs sticking out of lowrider jeans on 7th graders. I wouldn’t even wear that to a club. And I was also tired of seeing guy’s boxers hanging out of their pants. If you have to hold your pants up just to walk down the hall, don’t you think it’s time to invest in a belt? I’m tired of guys wearing clothes that are three sizes too big, and females wearing clothes that are three sizes too small. Some people argue that by making students wear uniforms, then it stifles their individuality. Whatever. Just because you wear the same thing, doesn’t mean you think the same way. If parents knew what their kids were wearing, and took control and took…what’s the word?…oh, yeah! RESPONSIBILITY over what their kids wear to school, then maybe it wouldn’t ruin it for the kids who do dress appropriately to school. School is a place where you learn the necessary skills to be part of the work force and part of an educated society. It is not a fashion show. It is not a country club. It is not a sports camp. It is not a place to go during the day because there’s nothing on daytime TV. The new dress code consists of khaki pants with blue or white shirts shirts. It’s not that hard to find those. Wal-Mart sells those kind of clothes; the GAP sells those kind of clothes, so pick your price range. Personally, I had to wear uniforms when I went to school in Japan, and I didn’t think it was a problem at all. (And those uniforms were a lot worse off than the proposed uniforms here.) No, uniforms are not going to solve all the problems in public schools, but it will solve some. Besides, how many jobs out there require a uniform or at least a dress code? My guess is about 98%, so they might as well get used to it. Here’s my message to the parents who oppose the uniforms: Get your head out of your rear. You don’t have to fight with your kids on what to wear in the morning. And wearing a uniform does not mean your child suddenly is a different person who cannot think on his/her own. To the kids who oppose uniforms: Get over it. You’ll have to wear some kind of uniform (or follow some kind of dress code) for the rest of your life. Learn to show your individuality through art, music, technology, writing, building trades, etc. Once you get home from school, you can change back into your over-priced skimpy (or ridiculously large) outfits that make you look like the thugs and streetwalkers that you portray.

: Indianapolis Public Schools, school uniforms