George Orwell, in his classic satire 1984; Sinclair Lewis in his novel Babbitt; Ayn Rand in her opus, Atlas Shrugged; addressed such conformity (in those days, it was called Communism), and during the Cold War, our uniquely free American society repulsed at such symbolic acts of eliminating one’s individual identity. Mandating, rather than choosing to be in uniform is a hideous repugnance to anyone who values his/her individuality; who values pride in his/her own presence and sense of personal taste.
Our clothing helps us to define who we are, for better or worse. To legally deny usour physical and visual presence, is to deny us part of our unique selves. To think that such a law might be conceived, might pass, is a commentary on how low our >once intellectually spirited framework of education has sunk; how fearful we as a society have become. Imagine the mediocre minds, which would think that a Band-Aid for our ailing set of cultural priorities and ethics--school uniforms--would actually eliminate our society’s ills. Rather, it would merely further hide and deny them.
Our country has survived and upheld its freedoms for over 200 years without such constraints and meltdowns of the masses. We as a nation have always prided ourselves, albeit sometimes hypocritically, in our diversities and our courage in the face of challenge. What a pity, as we end this century, that we have become so fearful of controlling our own free-spirited images that we seek to hide ourselves away, instead.
