From birth, everyone has been force fed the gender norms of America and society. Baby boys are sent home with blue blankets and the girls are sent home with pink ones. As they grow up, everyone buys the boys the trucks and action figures. On the other hand, girls are given dolls and dresses. The children do not get to choose what they want; these norms are then solidified in schooling. Schools teach children to conform to fit into the flow, to not make a ripple in the norms. Schools push the gender norms, mainly with their gendered dress codes that don't allow for children and teens to completely find themselves and express themselves. In other words, school systems are pushing the binary normativity, and the gender-sex agreement of our societies with gendered dress codes. .
Binary genders is becoming a recurring phrase through society. This phrase stands for the male and female genders; we now are further accepting that there are non-binary genders. These are genders that do not fit the standard outlines. Some non-binary genders are agender, bigender, and transgender. With this said, many schools' dress codes do not account for these genders. When a handbook is given to the students, most turn directly to the dress code section to see what they can get away with. On the other hand, a select few are thinking that these gendered requirements are limiting and uncomfortable. The people who write these codes and handbooks are people that are usually close minded. These close minded people grew up in a society where you were male or female, and wore pants or a skirt. These men would write a student dress code like Bishop Stang, a grades 9-12 school, does. Girls tops must be either an Oxford button down blouse, with the blouse tucked in, or a Donnelly's uniform sweater. Bottoms for girls must be a uniform plaid skirt with uniform black tights. Additionally, all girls shoes must include a small heel.
