Teens protest ‘sexist’ dress code policy at high school
‘Teach boys to focus, not girls to cover up’, say teenagers after principal calls assembly ‘regarding too much midriff’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A group of high school students in California have gone viral after walking out of lessons in protest at a “sexist” dress code.
In a protest on 3 June, the students allegedly walked out of school after the principal called an assembly on dress code, and girls showing “too much midriff”.
It was put together by teenager Evita Frick-Hisaw, who shared images of the protest to TikTok and Instagram, where she discussed the issue in a series of videos.
The teen argued in a TikTok video her school’s dress code “is sexist towards women and perpetuates rape culture. It makes us very uncomfortable”.
“We as students feel like what we wear is not distracting towards others or affecting anyone’s learning environment, she continued, “we should not be kicked out of school for wearing a crop top”.
Students, who were filmed wearing crop-tops for the protest, also covered the school’s hallways with posters reading “If children’s midriff’s distract you, you shouldn’t be working with children”.
Another sign, according to Evita’s Instagram, read: “Teach boys to focus, not girls to cover up”.
She wrote in a caption: “Our body our choice, it isn’t our fault they’re distracted. They can’t take away our confidence and self expression”.
All students were encouraged to take part in the walk out, with some male students seen in images wearing crop tops in protest at the “sexist” policy.
The students were from the performing arts academy of Natomas Charter School in Sacramento, California.
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”.
The school has since held meetings with the students involved in the walk out, with Mr Woods adding that his focus was on the “emotional health” of Natomas students during Covid.
Over 3 million people have since watched Evitaa’s TikTok protest video.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments