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An Arizona father made a bold statement while protesting a school board’s decision to relax its dress code for children when he dramatically stripped down to a crop top and Daisy Dukes in front of stunned attendees.
Ira Latham, 39, shocked attendees at the Higley Unified School District meeting in Gilbert, Arizona, by stripping naked on stage.
The father-of-four said he wanted to make a clear argument against the school’s new dress code policy, which was more lenient and condoned anything where the student’s underwear was not visible.
He did this by taking off his shirt to reveal a black crop top that was more than a few sizes too small for him, and a pair of Daisy Dukes that left little to the imagination. He said he bought the daring ensemble at a thrift store.
Latham has three sons in 7th, 5th and 4th grades and a daughter in 2nd grade. He said: ‘The dress code they wanted to achieve is really just a dress code for a public swimming pool. Just make sure kids cover their underwear and that’s it,” Latham shared NBC.
Ira Latham, 39, shocked attendees at the Higley Unified School District meeting in Gilbert, Arizona, by stripping off on stage
The father of four said he wanted to make a point about the school’s dress code policy – and did so by ripping off his shirt to reveal a black crop top that was more than a few sizes too small for him and a few Daisy Dukes that left little to the imagination
He said: ‘The dress code they wanted to achieve is really just a dress code for a public swimming pool. Make sure children cover their underwear and that’s about it’
He found the dress code problematic because it was mainly about underwear not being visible.
Before the dress code policy was updated, students were not allowed to expose their chest, stomach or midriff, but the new dress code prohibits students from exposing only their underwear.
He said, “As a father who is very concerned about my children and the children of everyone else in the neighborhood, I wanted to make a clear argument.”
Despite Latham’s courageous protest, the board voted 3-2 in favor of the more relaxed dress code.
The concerned father said: “It will be distracting in the classroom and there will be some parents who want to take their children out of the area,” although he did not specify who he expected to be distracted by what the students would choose. wear.
An X user said: ‘Leave teenage girls alone Ira Latham! How annoying for you. This policy does not only target girls, but also certain body types and races.’
Dress code policies typically target girls’ clothing and base the rules on not “sexualizing” girls through their outfits. This disparity between girls’ and boys’ expectations for appropriate school clothing raises the question of why girls are sexualized at school age and who they are sexualized by.
The concerned father said: “It will be distracting in the classroom and there will be parents who want to take their children out of the area.”
Latham’s wife shared a post on Facebook to show support for her husband’s courageous actions
Parents at an Illinois high school were outraged in 2019 after dozens of female students were told they had violated their school’s dress code policy by exposing their shoulders.
Numerous girls at Glenbard East High School in Lombard, Illinois, were reportedly ordered to change into school-issued T-shirts after a female counselor claimed they were showing too much skin.
“I was told to cover up because boys were looking at me,” student Chloe Lynch said Fox 5.
“It was very inappropriate, it made students feel uncomfortable, it made them feel sexualized and I think that was wrong,” one mother said.
Isabella Villegas, 18, from Kansas was furious after her 13-year-old sister Grace said she received negative comments from teachers for wearing an off-the-shoulder shirt to school.
The high school student had a T-shirt custom-made for her seventh-grade sister so she could wear it if she ever gets reprimanded for her outfits again.
The custom T-shirt read: “Dress code: promotes the objectification and sexualization of young bodies, blames the wearer for the viewer’s perceptions/actions, perpetuates rape culture, is BS (sic).”
Despite Latham’s courageous protest, the board voted 3-2 in favor of the more relaxed dress code
After Latham’s protest, Tiffany Schultz, president of the Higley Unified School District board of directors, said, “I understand the parents’ concerns. Did removing clothes have any effect on me or the meeting? No, that didn’t happen.
“He made his statement and we continued with our business. We heard from other speakers and moved on. As a board, we have chosen to let parents and families ultimately decide what is appropriate for them.
“It’s the choice of the parents and family and as long as it doesn’t disrupt the school day, it’s not a problem.”
She added, “We want teachers to teach and not have to waste time measuring a girl’s shirt or making a girl uncomfortable.”
Latham said in a Facebook post: ‘I put forward my most reasonable argument against the dress code policy, but unfortunately my attempt failed to influence the outcome’
Sharing a post with his Facebook friends, Latham said: ‘I’ll give a little backstory to explain my new wardrobe. I recently had the opportunity to speak at the Higley Unified School District board meeting where significant changes were made to the dress code.
‘The new policy is quite minimalist and more akin to the dress code for a public swimming pool than a policy suitable for an educational environment.
“The primary focus is on preventing exposure to underwear and banning see-through clothing.”
He continued: ‘The majority of parents in the audience expressed their opposition, but unfortunately there were no attempts at compromise and the decision was made against our wishes. This time 3:2 for the new dress code policy.
‘I put forward my most reasonable argument against the dress code policy, but unfortunately my attempt was unable to influence the outcome.’