Mandatory Uniforms in Public Schools Do you want equality among students in your child's school? Do you want less violence within your child's school? Would you like your daughter to concentrate more on her schoolwork and less on what name brand jeans she is wearing? All this is possible with mandatory uniform policies in public school districts. School uniforms may seem outdated for some people, but in many cases they can improve school spirit, attendance and student behavior. According to The Humanist magazine, former President Bill Clinton's 1996 State of the Union Address called for all 16,000 school districts in the country to adopt a uniform policy. The President stated, "If it means that teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear uniforms" (qtd in Wilkens, screen 1) The public school district in Long Beach, California was the first to take up the mandatory school uniform policy. The school district reported drastic decrease in violence, discipline problems, as well as higher test scores after one year of implementing the new policy (Wilkens, screen 1). Although students feel that wearing uniforms to school stifles individual expression and creativity, mandatory uniforms in public schools promote a positive learning environment because it creates equality among all students, it decreases violence, and students can focus on schoolwork instead of their clothing. Students along with some parents dispute that mandatory uniform policies within public schools are unconstitutional. They feel that mandatory uniforms in public schools violate the First Amendment of the Constitution, Freedom of Expression. The First Amendment was ratified in 1791 and states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the...
