The Communitarian Nature of School Uniforms

 

By Frank Filocomo

I hated the uniforms we had to wear in grade school. 

In my middle school in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, we were made to wear beige khaki pants and a collared shirt adorned with the school's logo. Deviation from this would result in a call home. 

I was something of a defiant little brat. I listened to death metal, skateboarded (though not well), and thought rules were bullshit. The uniforms, I felt, suppressed my totally unique individuality. 

It wasn't until much later that I started to see the communitarian merit in the common school uniform. 

Brandon McNeice, in a must-read piece for Front Porch Republic, makes the case for school uniforms as social-levelers:

Uniforms reject the idea that a child’s worth is measured by what she wears, what she can afford, or how effectively she can perform her identity.

Thus, the uniform connotes a sense of togetherness. 

You'll often find in everyday life the individualist temptation to engage in conspicuous consumption. That is, the materialistic desire to show off ones wealth with gaudy, outward displays. Someone wearing a Rolex watch, for example, wants people to know that they come from affluence. 

When, however, we all dress similarly, devoid of designer brands and lavish embellishments, the social dynamic is effectively leveled. Thus, personality and individualism must be demonstrated through intellectual merit. 

Read McNeice's article here. 

Speaking of Front Porch Republic, I should have an article coming out there in the coming days.

Stay tuned!