‘Teach Boys To Focus, Not Girls To Cover Up’: Teens’ Protest Over ‘Sexist’ School Dress Code Goes Viral
A group of teenagers from the Natomas Charter School, a performing arts school in Sacramento, decided they’ve had enough with its rules, telling them how to look. So they staged a protest.
In an attempt to challenge the school’s “sexist” dress-code, the students uncovered their midriffs.
One of the protesters, Evita, who is known on TikTok as @baggyjeanmom, also shared a video from the day she and some of her classmates made their point.
The recording shows girls and boys in tank tops with notes written across their bodies. “Distraction” was the main word, inked with a sharpie on several students’ stomachs.
@baggyjeanmomwe started this all because our principal was going to have an assembly abt dress code so day of the assembly we did this. (There was a reason)♬ original sound – Sickickmusic
The video already has over 3.4 million views
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
The students also hung signs calling out administrators for insinuating their bodies are a distraction.
“Teach boys to focus, not girls to cover up,” one sign read, while another said: “If children’s midriffs distract you, you should not be working with children.”
At the end of the clip, Evita said the protest has led to the school having “a real talk to change the dress code,” but she also added that some people got “kicked out” that day.
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
After her TikTok blew up, Evita made a follow-up video, explaining that the protest was timed with a school assembly on dress code, and that it was staged due to a number of students feeling that the current dress code “was sexist towards women and also perpetuating rape culture.”
“We, as students, feel like what we wear is not distracting towards others and not affecting anyone’s learning environment,” she said.
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
One person said in the comments, “These little kids are gonna have a really hard time getting a job in the future if they can’t understand the basics of dress code.”
But the teenager claimed she’s fully aware of the fact that neither she, nor her friends will be able to flaunt their stomachs once they graduate and enter into the professional world.
“We know we are going to have a dress code when we get older and possibly have uniforms with whatever job that comes, but right now we are in school, and we are in a learning environment,” she said
“We should not have to be kicked out of class just because we are wearing a crop top… I shouldn’t be the only one speaking on this topic and that’s why we are having this meeting.”
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Evita said she talked to her favorite teacher about the protest and while he believes the students “could have had a better approach to it,” he still stands by them. She said he “understands” them, and she agrees with him.
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Joe Wood, the executive director of Natomas, told The Independent that the school’s dress code “is intentionally gender neutral” and that “many of them had not read our dress code.”
Image credits: baggyjeanmom
Here are some of the most popular comments under the videos
It's been reported that even women in Iraq have experienced harassment while being covered from head to toe. With that in mind, when will people understand that the real issue is never the dress/clothes?
some men can't control them selves and are not man enough to admit it even to their self , so they blame the women to feel better about their sorry ass
They can control themselves. They just choose not to.
That's what happens when you teach guys that they can't control themselves. They believe it.
Oh they know it, but it's easier to blame us than to take responsibility
And you can't responsibility for dressing like a s**t and enticing men.
Conversely, some females insist on sexually harassing not just an individual but the entire public and blame their behaviour on the behaviour of a minority of males to feel better about their sorry a**e. And not only is it generally accepted but it's often encouraged. Feminism! Because it's all about equality... Some kids just want an education. What does this have to do with that? Maybe schools do need to be segregated, if we can't all treat one another with consideration and respect...
The more you cover up, the bigger the problem becomes, and if teachers see bare flesh as a problem, then I would seriously worry about that teacher around anyone they have power over....
if teachers all come to the same conclusion then they have something there. It's not a conspiracy you know
it's not blame, it's explaining their problem to want to f**k a slutty bitch like you
This comment has been deleted.
Oh, shoot, I deleted my comment! Anyways, hard agree with RandomBeing, if we keep teaching boys that "some men can't control themselves" they'll believe it and use it as a free pass because "boys will be boys."
you blow things out of proportion
In Islam, we are instructed to be modest, ok? Clothes DO matter.
As a guy from a recent BP article said, "If girls who like girls can control themselves, I don't think the problem is what they're wearing."
Yeah, lesbian here. It's honestly not that hard. I don't even notice when girls stomachs or shoulders are showing unless we're in a room alone, which is a whole different story. If it's a classroom full of people and like two girls have their shoulders exposed, honestly it's not a big deal.
Good on you guys for that!
Exactly. It's seriously not that hard boys
Not sure which you are implying: that women aren't raped by women or that men never not rape women? You're a walking facepalm.
A teacher who comments on skirt length, exposed shoulders/midrift etc... they are more of a problem than the boys in the school....
The teacher is required to enforce the dress code. Female teachers enforce the dress code as well.
To be fair - men and women react differently to attractive impulses by nature (Male brains react stronger). Doesn't excuse anything as we as species are (or should be) developed enough to suppress instincts, but we also have to keep in mind that teenager brains are usually not fully developed in that regard. A balance between freedom of expression and appropriate clothing would be the best solution. (Never experienced such problem during my time in school here in Germany though)
This comment has been deleted.
This comment has been deleted.
The people who buy into the dress codes think men are too stupid and weak minded to control themselves. They're also the ones that blame victims for rape.
unlike those young schoolboys who you all want to learn to control their urges immediately, most decent men already learned that and we can control the urge to act offended and make a big fuzz about it. Not being offended is also a show of self control. And as you say ... presumably.
This comment has been deleted.
So few men? How many men have you interacted with today and how many times have you been raped today? So few men? You're talking about a minority as though it were not even a majority but the rule and that the times you interacted with a male and weren't raped were the exception. Do you also wonder why people make fun of feminists and modern feminism?
I'm honestly not sure I understand what your comment means. Etc(deleted it, got it) Edit: Ok I think I got it now, English isn't my native language. If you mean that it's weird that people don't find it offensive when these dress codes are reasoned with it's distracting for teachers or other kids then yes I totally agree.
Vera, there is no need to make a negative assumption about most men. Most men are not misogynists.
Every normal person just dont give a f**k, because not everyone is easily offended snowflake, you know.
I have zero doubt that is a true statement
Is this is where I'm not allowed to say "not all men" and I just have to accept the statement "misogyny is stronger than self esteem in most men" because somebody posted it on the internet?
It already says MOST men, not ALL men, so why you would feel the need to say "NoT aLl MeN" is beyond comprehension.
Because it implies that most men are misogynists, which isn't true. How would you like it if someones said that most women were racists?
I would call you a poor researcher, given the fact that there is ample proof of a significant amount of men being misogynists, yet there are no such claims for most women being racists.
It's been reported that even women in Iraq have experienced harassment while being covered from head to toe. With that in mind, when will people understand that the real issue is never the dress/clothes?
some men can't control them selves and are not man enough to admit it even to their self , so they blame the women to feel better about their sorry ass
They can control themselves. They just choose not to.
That's what happens when you teach guys that they can't control themselves. They believe it.
Oh they know it, but it's easier to blame us than to take responsibility
And you can't responsibility for dressing like a s**t and enticing men.
Conversely, some females insist on sexually harassing not just an individual but the entire public and blame their behaviour on the behaviour of a minority of males to feel better about their sorry a**e. And not only is it generally accepted but it's often encouraged. Feminism! Because it's all about equality... Some kids just want an education. What does this have to do with that? Maybe schools do need to be segregated, if we can't all treat one another with consideration and respect...
The more you cover up, the bigger the problem becomes, and if teachers see bare flesh as a problem, then I would seriously worry about that teacher around anyone they have power over....
if teachers all come to the same conclusion then they have something there. It's not a conspiracy you know
it's not blame, it's explaining their problem to want to f**k a slutty bitch like you
This comment has been deleted.
Oh, shoot, I deleted my comment! Anyways, hard agree with RandomBeing, if we keep teaching boys that "some men can't control themselves" they'll believe it and use it as a free pass because "boys will be boys."
you blow things out of proportion
In Islam, we are instructed to be modest, ok? Clothes DO matter.
As a guy from a recent BP article said, "If girls who like girls can control themselves, I don't think the problem is what they're wearing."
Yeah, lesbian here. It's honestly not that hard. I don't even notice when girls stomachs or shoulders are showing unless we're in a room alone, which is a whole different story. If it's a classroom full of people and like two girls have their shoulders exposed, honestly it's not a big deal.
Good on you guys for that!
Exactly. It's seriously not that hard boys
Not sure which you are implying: that women aren't raped by women or that men never not rape women? You're a walking facepalm.
A teacher who comments on skirt length, exposed shoulders/midrift etc... they are more of a problem than the boys in the school....
The teacher is required to enforce the dress code. Female teachers enforce the dress code as well.
To be fair - men and women react differently to attractive impulses by nature (Male brains react stronger). Doesn't excuse anything as we as species are (or should be) developed enough to suppress instincts, but we also have to keep in mind that teenager brains are usually not fully developed in that regard. A balance between freedom of expression and appropriate clothing would be the best solution. (Never experienced such problem during my time in school here in Germany though)
This comment has been deleted.
This comment has been deleted.
The people who buy into the dress codes think men are too stupid and weak minded to control themselves. They're also the ones that blame victims for rape.
unlike those young schoolboys who you all want to learn to control their urges immediately, most decent men already learned that and we can control the urge to act offended and make a big fuzz about it. Not being offended is also a show of self control. And as you say ... presumably.
This comment has been deleted.
So few men? How many men have you interacted with today and how many times have you been raped today? So few men? You're talking about a minority as though it were not even a majority but the rule and that the times you interacted with a male and weren't raped were the exception. Do you also wonder why people make fun of feminists and modern feminism?
I'm honestly not sure I understand what your comment means. Etc(deleted it, got it) Edit: Ok I think I got it now, English isn't my native language. If you mean that it's weird that people don't find it offensive when these dress codes are reasoned with it's distracting for teachers or other kids then yes I totally agree.
Vera, there is no need to make a negative assumption about most men. Most men are not misogynists.
Every normal person just dont give a f**k, because not everyone is easily offended snowflake, you know.
I have zero doubt that is a true statement
Is this is where I'm not allowed to say "not all men" and I just have to accept the statement "misogyny is stronger than self esteem in most men" because somebody posted it on the internet?
It already says MOST men, not ALL men, so why you would feel the need to say "NoT aLl MeN" is beyond comprehension.
Because it implies that most men are misogynists, which isn't true. How would you like it if someones said that most women were racists?
I would call you a poor researcher, given the fact that there is ample proof of a significant amount of men being misogynists, yet there are no such claims for most women being racists.