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50 U. Rich. L. Rev. 1039 (2015-2016)
Sexualization, Sex Discrimination, and Public School Dress Codes

handle is hein.journals/urich50 and id is 1077 raw text is: SEXUALIZATION, SEX DISCRIMINATION, AND PUBLIC SCHOOL DRESS CODES Meredith Johnson Harbach * INTRODUCTION If you follow social media, you may have noticed the rash of re- porting on battles over public school dress codes and their effects on and implications for girls.' Complaints have been registered across the country, including here in Virginia.' For example, in September 2014 at the Maggie Walker Governor's School, admin- istrators announced over the PA system that school officials would be performing a shorts-length spot check.3 Any girls found to be in violation of the rule would be forced to change; if ten girls broke the rule, all girls would be banned from wearing shorts for a day.4 In Evanston, Illinois, school officials banned leggings be- cause they were too distracting for boy students.5 In New Jer- sey, high school girls were prohibited from wearing strapless dresses to prom because they, too, were distracting.' In Florida, a new student who inadvertently violated her school's skirt rules was made to wear a so-called shame suit: red sweatpants and * Associate Professor, University of Richmond School of Law. Thanks to Kimberly Jenkins Robinson for helpful comments during the drafting of this paper, and to John O'Malley for research assistance. I also thank John Hogan and the editorial staff of the Richmond Law Review for their excellent work on this piece during the editing process. 1. See, e.g., Rebecca Lurye, Beaufort High Student's Dress-Code Protest Part of Larg- er Social Media Thend, BEAUFORT GAZETTE (Oct. 29, 2015), http://www.islandpacket.com /news/local/community/beaufort-news/article4l853426.html. 2. See id.; Elizabeth Ballou, Richmond's Maggie L. Walker Governor's School Protest- ed Dress Code Sexism in the Best Way, BUSTLE (Oct. 6, 2015), http://www.bustle.com/arti clesI41715-richmonds-maggie-l-walker-governors-school-protested-dress-code-sexism-in- the-best-way. 3. Ballou, supra note 2. 4. Id. 5. Eliana Dockterman, When Enforcing School Dress Codes Turns into Slut Sham- ing, TIME (Mar. 25, 2014), http:/time.com/36997/when-enforcing-school-dress-codes-turns- into-slut-shaming/. 6. Id. 1039

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