Dress Code Man

Sorry about the giant picture! I couldn’t figure out how to shrink it.  I really mostly wanted you to see the caption “dress code man”.  Yes, I was once a radical and once had a lot of hair.

Slatington High School , 1969.  The world was changing. High schools in the Lehigh Valley were changing. All across Lehigh and Northampton counties high schools were fighting the norms.  The prime target at the time was the high school dress code.  Jeans were not allowed. Girls had to wear skirts or dresses, even in the depths of winter.  Completely different from today.

At Slatington we tried to fight that.  I was one of the leaders of the change, from my position as VP of Student Council.  We explored sit down protests. We explored boycotting the cafeteria. We definitely did distribute petitions and got almost every kid in school to sign.  Basically we made enough noise to get a sit down meeting with the principal, Mr. Kemp. In that meeting, I remember the principal asking us how it would be if he were sitting there in shorts and a tee shirt. We replied that he would be more comfortable and could concentrate better on his job.  He was not happy with that answer.

Our victory in the end was minimal. I can only remember that girls were now allowed to wear slacks instead of skirts and dresses…but only in December, January, and February!

Parkland High School, 2018.  I wait outside for my daughter after school and see how far dress codes have declined.  Wow!

The funny thing is, in spite of my radical past, I have grown much more conservative in this area.  I think the decline in dress codes is representative of the decline of decorum in general. Our standards for ourselves have certainly diminished. Language is coarser. Common courtesy has all but disappeared.

Like all things of this nature there is the pendulum effect. One extreme to the other.  Some public schools are instituting uniforms.

I think one thing is clear though. We should always question authority. Does it make sense? If it does not, try to peacefully change things.  Even the Buddha said…question everything, even the things I say.

I’m am off to work now. I will, of course, be wearing something professional. No tie though. I want to be comfortable so I can concentrate better on my job.