I'm a 16 year old junior in high school who lives in a very small Connecticut town (pop. 7500). Our high school consists of grades 7-12, with about 200 7th and 8th graders, and 485 high school students, including those who go to tech schools in surrounding towns. It is a relatively sheltered community, many elderly people, etc. However there is rising controversy in our town about the youth of the community.
At A Glance Author anonymousemily Contact [email protected] When N/A We have a major drug problem in our town, or at least that's how some see it. In reality, it's simply the result of small town thought processes. We have a BMX club, consisting of mostly "decent" kids who don't do drugs or things of that nature. In the past they vandalized, which was really just riding on town property because they had no where else to ride. There are several adults in the town who are trying to raise money to build them a park, but to no avail.
In the school systems, we are required to cover any facial piercings with band-aids. Not only is this 1) Unsanitary, it is also 2) Hypocritical. The school handbook states that we cannot have facial piercings. The Board of Education decided this (our BOE consists of 12 people). Our old superintendent had the ingenious idea of the band-aids. He was retired last year and has been replaced by a much more modern man. However no one feels comfortable enough to breach the subject of piercings.
Many out of town teachers who came to teach at the high school were boggled as to why exactly kids were wandering around with their faces covered in band-aids. Even the principal, who began her position as such last year, had to ask the students why exactly this was so. She believes it is ridiculous.
Most teachers strictly enforce the rule, to a point of stupidity. However some also do see it as ridiculous. My English teacher, who came from a ghetto in California, doesn't make the students cover their piercings. A few teachers request the cover only because they have to by school rules.
Our dress code, which is I suppose fairly lenient (no midriffs, shorts with inseams less than 3 inches, tank top straps less than 2 inches...heh....anyway), is only enforced on those who don't have "family connections" in the town, i.e., "How dare you say my daughter is baring too much skin! She looks wonderful in that piece of gauze!". I still find it startling how few parents have actually stepped up to the BOE and mentioned all of this.
I myself do not have any facial piercings. When I become of age in 17 months, I do plan to. And I will not cover them, nor take them out. I am an excellent student, I am self-employed teaching piano to 17 kids aged 6 to 12, and I feel as if i deserve that right. My friend, who is a decent student, had her eyebrow pierced last year. She's a very nice person. She has great plans for her own body modifications. She's recently been designing sleeves for herself. Will they make her cover up her tattoos? Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if they did.
I've gone to the principal before and asked her exactly why the policies stood as they did. She explained that the BOE found facial piercings to be threatening and frightening to the 7th and 8th grade students. Okay, so when they go to the local mall and see a kid with rings in his lips and stretched ears they're gonna pee their pants? Piercings are commonplace. Tattoos are commonplace. It's nice to admire them and see the creative ways in which people can utilize these mediums and mod their bodies, but it's lost much of its shock value. "Freak" is no longer an insult,; for many it's a cliche. Soon I will be having a meeting with my BOE to discuss this growing problem within my school system.
We, the students, do have ONE weapon which we have not yet revealed to officials. This is a new act passed by Congress regarding freedom of expression in the form of things such as clothing, piercings, etc. The second is the good old First Amendment. Federal laws have power over state or district laws. We are trying to get enough information to have a fluent and thorough argument against our BOE.
Conclusively, my school and town is one big hypocritical statement. While we can't show our piercings or wear anything "too extreme or risque" (which is not enforced on the "select few", i.e. town gene pool), our school officials have decided to ship students in from the ghettos of surrounding cities to "diversify" our small town. Wouldn't letting the kids in the community show their own individuality in ways accepted by general society be "diversifying"? The education system wants to make all of its pupils more accepting, etc. So why shelter them from "scarey and dangerous" things? People believe that bringing their kids up in a small community will make their kids well-rounded and great adults. While small town life has it's advantages.....oh wait, it doesn't.