With the return of good weather comes the tireless question of dress codes in our schools.
I am one of those who approve of the existence of a dress code requiring minimum standards based on respect and safety in the public space: prohibition of hate messages, obligation to wear shoes or clothing demonstrating a certain professionalism are examples rules that seem valid to me.
However, I would like to strongly denounce the sexist way in which this code is conveyed and the harmful effect that certain degrading speeches that our children hear daily these days can have. “Hide your shapes”, “don’t show it”, “have you thought about what people will think of you? are all guilt-inducing formulas that contribute to an unhealthy relationship to the body and to sexuality.
Above all, we must understand that our daughters are the target of very strong, targeted and contradictory normative injunctions: in social networks, in stores, in television series, the body is shown as having to be an object of desire, but at the same time, we maintain the discourse that this is wrong and that they should be ashamed of it.
There are many power relationships that affect women’s bodies and the consequences are serious. Our schools are one of the places where these tensions are revealed, and the issue of dress code is only the tip of this iceberg.
I ask for increased benevolence in the way messages are conveyed in this area and, above all, a reframing of the arguments invoked. Need we remind you that hospitalizations due to eating disorders have jumped 60% since March 2020, according to data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information?
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