This weekend I read an article in The Chronicle http://chronicle.com/section/Home/5 ,which discussed the reaction on Black Colleges and the way the students dress. The focus of the article was Morehouse College, which
is an all male HBCU. The article discussed how the university put in place several rules "forbidding students...from wearing women's clothes,including dresses, tunics, and pumps". After reading this article several questions came to mind and I wanted to get the opinions of my college friends. I posted on my facebook, How would you feel if your university decided to come up with a uniform or dress code, what would be the reasons you agree or disagree with a dress code? Many people responded that they would not attend a university with a dress code. One response that stood out to me was " I don't agree with wearing a uniform, I am a very fashionable person and my clothes reflect who I am. If I had to wear a uniform there would not be anything to distinguish me from the rest of the students on campus. Uniforms take a way from individuality and cause people to conform to one idea". This response stood out because I noticed t
hat the person who wrote it values clothes and individuality. They believe that clothes make the individual and if we all were to wear the same thing then college students could not have their own identity. I then challenged his response by asking, what if the students had the opportunity to create the uniform/ dresscode? He states, there are no two people alike on this campus or any other campus, by enforcing a uniform or dress code the university would be forcing students to be something they are not. College is not a team. I would not want to be a part of the uniform commitee because I am unique and I do not want anyone dressing like me". After I posted the question, I started to think about clothes and how people associate particular styles of dress with race. The fact that the article was based on HBCU, I wondered if this same article could have been written based on Princeton Univeristy? Are black Universities targeted for a reason? I started to think about the Rutgers community and how it seems very diverse but are there particular fashions that we associate with race. On campus I noticed that there are a few pieces of clothing that any and every race own; ugg boots and north face coats. Is there a reason for this, i have no idea but I will make that an interview question. Typically all the males dress the same but for the women I notice that we typically purchase the same pieces but wear them in a different way. In the end, is it fair that a Univeristy gets to decide what the students wear? In someways are we all dressed in uniform because we tend to follow trends and shop at the sam store as our neighbor?
is an all male HBCU. The article discussed how the university put in place several rules "forbidding students...from wearing women's clothes,including dresses, tunics, and pumps". After reading this article several questions came to mind and I wanted to get the opinions of my college friends. I posted on my facebook, How would you feel if your university decided to come up with a uniform or dress code, what would be the reasons you agree or disagree with a dress code? Many people responded that they would not attend a university with a dress code. One response that stood out to me was " I don't agree with wearing a uniform, I am a very fashionable person and my clothes reflect who I am. If I had to wear a uniform there would not be anything to distinguish me from the rest of the students on campus. Uniforms take a way from individuality and cause people to conform to one idea". This response stood out because I noticed t
hat the person who wrote it values clothes and individuality. They believe that clothes make the individual and if we all were to wear the same thing then college students could not have their own identity. I then challenged his response by asking, what if the students had the opportunity to create the uniform/ dresscode? He states, there are no two people alike on this campus or any other campus, by enforcing a uniform or dress code the university would be forcing students to be something they are not. College is not a team. I would not want to be a part of the uniform commitee because I am unique and I do not want anyone dressing like me". After I posted the question, I started to think about clothes and how people associate particular styles of dress with race. The fact that the article was based on HBCU, I wondered if this same article could have been written based on Princeton Univeristy? Are black Universities targeted for a reason? I started to think about the Rutgers community and how it seems very diverse but are there particular fashions that we associate with race. On campus I noticed that there are a few pieces of clothing that any and every race own; ugg boots and north face coats. Is there a reason for this, i have no idea but I will make that an interview question. Typically all the males dress the same but for the women I notice that we typically purchase the same pieces but wear them in a different way. In the end, is it fair that a Univeristy gets to decide what the students wear? In someways are we all dressed in uniform because we tend to follow trends and shop at the sam store as our neighbor?
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