#Yearbook photos girls were altered hide code

They also shouldn’t be made to feel like their bodies make others uncomfortable so they should change how they dress to “not disrupt” those around them. These young women shouldn’t have to feel like there is something wrong with them or their bodies at an age when they’re growing into adults. Well, you can start off by not sexualizing young women’s bodies. Basically, they’re saying, “How can we have a positive educational environment for the young men of this school if we have young women’s shoulders and lower necklines exposed? The audacity!” It’s about how her body will affect those around her. Because this isn’t really about the young student’s life and her wellness. It’s a story I’ve heard before and I’m sick and tired of it. The school is basically sending a message to all of their students that women’s bodies are to be controlled and monitored due to the “health and safety of the individual, promote a positive educational environment and not disrupt the educational activities and processes of the school” according to Bartram Trail High School’s own dress code. What they don’t go to school for is to be sexualized at such a young age and told parts of their bodies are inappropriate and should be covered up for the benefit of all.

#Yearbook photos girls were altered hide code

And the 80 female students had violated that dress code so they went ahead and edited their photos without the students’ permission.Īnd honestly, I’m disgusted with Bartram Trail High School and every other school that has done something like this to its female students. Johns County School District told WJAX that the yearbook photos must follow dress code guidelines. The school’s yearbook coordinator, a female teacher, made the decision. Oh no, the school went ahead and edited things such as exposed shoulders and low necklines. And it’s not like they edited out a random zit or touched up their faces. Johns had their yearbook photos altered without their permission. And it’s got to stop.Īccording to CBS Jackson affiliate WJAX, about 80 female students at Bartram Trail High School in St. I wasn’t surprised because this isn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last, where young women’s bodies have been deemed inappropriate and therefore sexualized. National columnist Suzette Hackney is a member of USA TODAY’S Editorial Board.When reading the headline “Florida high school altered girls’ yearbook photos it deemed immodest,” I honestly wasn’t surprised-and it’s not because this is happening in Florida. If there is a dress code that must be adhered to, it needs to be applied to all students – on each and every yearbook page. If photos must be altered, they must be altered for all. It needs educators and administrators who can make logical decisions that don't bring mortifying and unnecessary attention to its student body. Their goal should be to build self-esteem, not tear it down. She said the school would offer refunds to those who wanted one, and that the district is “receiving feedback from parents/guardians/students on making this process better for next year.”įeedback isn't what this school needs. “Bartram Trail High School’s previous procedure was to not include student pictures in the yearbook that they deemed in violation of the student code of conduct, so the digital alterations were a solution to make sure all students were included in the yearbook,” Langston told The Record. These students were permitted to wear these outfits throughout the day without reprimand, but later were made to look clownish. Augustine Record that a teacher who also serves as the yearbook coordinator made the edits after deciding some of the photos violated dress code. It is objectifying and sexualizing them.Ĭhristina Langston, a school district spokeswoman, told The St. It is teaching them that their bodies are somehow inappropriate. Of course.Īnd forcing them to hide their bodies, particularly developing bodies, sends them a message that they should be ashamed and embarrassed of their anatomy. There are group photos in the yearbook that include the boys' swim team wearing nothing but bandage-sized briefs. A bit of background: Bartram has been under fire for the disparate way dress code policies have been enforced between boys and girls, and for excluding gender non-conforming and transgender students. This latest move is so out of bounds, so punitive, it's almost laughable.