Is presentation everything?
We live in a world where what we wear determines who we are, and who we are destined to be. I have never noticed how much someone’s appearance can affect their future until I got to college. While surfing the web I stumbled across America Ferrera, who happens to be the star the hit T.V. show “Ugly Betty”, however, she was not in costume. She was absolutely gorgeous. “Ugly Betty” was created to make a statement about fashion and beauty: you do not have to look the part to get the job. But the irony of that situation is the statement. If someone did not have to look the part the series would have never even originated. Looking at Ferrera in costume and not in costume, one would automatically choose the Ferrera who wears the makeup, curls the hair, and dresses with a sense of fashion to work for a fashion magazine over someone commonly known as Ugly Betty.
Consider RuPaul, a drag queen who has been seen in both drag and as a male. He is known for being in drag and has his own show entitled “RuPaul’s Drag Race”. However, do you think that he would have gotten a job in the white house dressed in drag? The answer that I have come up with after hours of thinking is NO. He could be the best candidate for the job in terms of credentials, but because he does not look the part he could not get the job. Maybe dressed as a man he may be able to get the position, but in drag? Never.
Furthermore, we all know of the Morehouse dress code I presume. Basically guys are dressing like women and it is supposedly a distraction to other students, detrimental to the schools name even, and a potential cause for declining donations from alumni. How can someone’s outer appearance cause such uproar in not only the AUC but the media as well? It does not matter how smart they are or how they keep the rating at number three HBCU in the country, how they bring in over $36,000 in tuition money per student, room and board and fees, but because they dress like women the things stated are not valid. Or maybe they are, just not good enough to give the students license to dress any type of way. It is not a bad thing that the school encourages a look, but it is in my opinion a bad thing to infringe on someone else’s freedom of choice. I guess the option to enforce a dress code is okay at a private institution. Or is it?
I say dress how you want and see how far it gets you. If someone wants to dress like a woman when they are men that is their business. However, people should understand that their outer appearance does weigh heavily on how they are perceived down to their potential career options. It may not be fair but it is what it is. The aforesaid holds true because some people do not understand that life is not about what you look like, whether it is about how much you as a person can bring to the table, the knowledge you hold, how you treat people and how well you do it. I once heard something that really stuck with me: “In order to guarantee or deny your entry into heaven it depends on how you answer these two questions; Do you have joy in your life and have you brought joy to the lives of others?” Not how well you dress or what gender you decide to identify with in terms of clothing.
Sascha Betts
6 comments:
Wow! I was waiting to see if this group would blog on this topic and you did The Morehouse dress Code is a topic I have heard has been on CNN and I, myself, heard it on Michael Baisden, a nationally syndicated radio show. I agree with you that those "boys" were given the opportunity to go to Morehouse based on the altitude of their minds and I feel that when Mor3ehouse did not have a picture to a face, they saw everything they wanted at their school but, because the face comes with a skirt and high heels they no longer want their altitude. They want to take away there individuality- the same thing that made the stand out on a piece of paper. I do think it is wrong. And as a woman of Spelman, I see some of my "sisters" who wear male clothing, would Spelman implement a dress code. Is there not a law or something thaat says a individual is free to express them selfs by all means? UIf not there needs to be. I am curious as to if this dress code will be implemented and if so how far.....
-Jacquelyn D. Patterson
This was a great topic, and a great presentation. I believe that there is a time and place for everything, and that people should be able to dress as they please. However, the morehouse dress code that was recently implemented was a good idea to me, because due to the values that morehouse has upheld, "Morehouse Men" should not be wearing female attire. Wearing female clothes goes against many things that the school stands for. I also believe that what you wear determines how others perceive you because if you have expensive jeans on people may think you have a lot of money, which is not the case a lot of the time. People should not automatically judge people based solely on what they wear without getting to know them first because they may get the wrong first impression.
-Shaunte F
I think that there is a time and place for everything. In class and in the learning environment, I believe that it is important for Morehouse men to dress for the positin and career they want to have in the future. This means that I think they should wear appropriate attire. Job recruiters would not take a man seriously who is wearing a dress and high heels to an interview. However, Morehouse men should be able to wear what they want in their free time and outside of the classroom. Bottom line, these men know what they are getting into when they put on that skirt, those heels, and that purse. They know the criticism that they will recieve. If they are willing to take that risk in their free time, so be it. Their choice to do that in their own time does not mean that they are not intelligent and capable. Morehouse men who dress like women should realize that their assets will most likely be overshadowed by their attire in an interview, and that Morehouse College is trying to prepare them for the future.
I believe that how someone dresses is up to them. I am much more for individual rights than private institutional rights. I do not beleive its okay to strip those of their constitutional rights because your a private institution. If Morehouse really felt that strongly about it, they should have escorted the 7 boys who dress like girls to the side and let them know that they should change, but instead they went and changed the rules pulling in national attention. There is no reason people who never knew of Morehouse before should perceive it as the transgender/cross dressing school. This whole incident is a shame!
-Nia Newton
This was great topic to bring up. As Spelman women, we constantly see guys over at Morehouse who indeed dress this way, but does this take a way the intelligence that they have? No. Should they be penalized because choose to show their individuality and creativity in ways that someone in authority disapproves. NO. Everyone has a write to free speech and it just so happens that their free speech includes their attire. I say embrace the person that you are, we are all different coming from different backgrounds. If we were all the same, Morehouse as well as any other HBCU would not have their uniqueness.
-Courtney Warren
The truth of the matter is that your physical appearance will always determine how individuals perceive you. For instance those young ladies who opt to wear less and/or shorter clothing than others are perceived to be "loose" (for lack of a better word). Or if you are dressed more relaxed people may not treat you the same as the individual who's not. At the end of the day "you have to dress the part." We are being prepared for the "real world" and entry into our careers. I am sure these young men would not show up to an interview dressed as such. Spelman even has their own personal dress code: no scarfs, rollers, sleepwear, etc. it's all out of the matter of trying to produce respectable individuals. The bottom line is you won't be taken seriously if your appearance doesn't display that you are.
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