The weather’s getting warmer, and everyone is anxious to get get rid of their bulky coats and boots and bring out shorts and t-shirts. But one problem faced every year at Millennium Brooklyn High School is the dress code.

The code has caused quite a lot of controversy over the years, pertaining to whether or not it is too restrictive. The subject is not only a problem in the summer, but in the cooler months of winter also. In a brief interview, Mr. Conway, explained the purpose of the dress code as something that was “put in place by the D.O.E as certain criteria that must be met by all public schools” as well as “something “to make the learning environment safe, respectable, and not distracting to everyone” .

On its website, the D.O.E has information on the dress code and claim that the point is “to provide an environment conducive to promoting educational excellence with minimum distractions and disruptions of the learning environment, we expect you and your child’s cooperation in complying with the following dress code. […] Students who violate the dress code shall be required to modify there (their) appearance by covering or removing the offending item, or, if necessary or practical, replacing it with an acceptable item.”

The problem with this statement however lies in its choice of words. “Distractions” and “offending” are highly subjective words, and as a result raise questions as to who determines what is and is not considered offensive, distractive, or even appropriate at that. For instance, the dress code states hats are not to be worn in school. If you look at it from a literal perspective hats are made to warm your head in the winter or keep the sun out of your eyes in the summer. Now people choose to wear them as an accessory not necessarily meaning to evoke any sort of offensive message.

Asif Alli, a senior attending MBHS agrees, “Wearing a hat is a form of expression that is harmless. I would enjoy wearing hats at school.”

Now on another end of the spectrum, garments such as boys’ pants being worn below the waist, or girls skirts being mid-thigh, open up a whole different can of worms. Should boys be allowed to wear their pants as high or low as they want to? Should girls be told to cover up their legs? The main argument here is that this form of dressing may cause a distraction in class, but the truth is, if someone were willing enough to get distracted in the way the DOE implies, they could still do so with someone covered from head to toe. What do you think about the dress code?