Tony Alarcon, father of Demetra was having a normal day until he received a strange phone call. He saw it was his daughter’s school calling but wasn’t quite sure why. When he understood the actual reason he was called into the school that day he was blown away. At that point, he was infuriated and he was not letting it go. He wanted justice for his daughter.
A Normal Day
It was your typical boiling summer day when Tony took his daughter to school and went to work. It was one of the hottest days of the year with temperatures up to 90 degrees. She did not want to be uncomfortable and sweaty in school so she made sure her clothing was good for the heat.
A Normal Day
No School Uniform
Her school, Raymond J. Fisher middle-school allowed students to dress as they please but did outline certain rules. There was no strict uniform, but they put basic rules to keep the students from dressing in bathing suits. This made sense, they are a school after all.
No School Uniform
Protective Dad
Tony Alarcon works as a real estate agent and investment baker and is very successful in his work. He is skilled in arguing for himself and is a strong believer in seeking justice. When a situation arises, which he doesn’t agree with then he is all for confronting it. This is even more so when it involves his daughter.
Protective Dad
Embarrassed
On that ordinary morning, Demetra was humiliated in class and called out by the teacher. She was not the first young girl to be singled it out, it did not lessen her embarrassment. She was confused and wasn’t quite sure what was going on.
Embarrassed
Inappropriate Outfit
She was oblivious to the fact that her blue romper would cause such a ruckus at school. To her knowledge, her outfit was acceptable and her father also thought so too. Her dad was protective of her and if something was inappropriate he would be the first to say so.
Inappropriate Outfit
A Huge Clash
Demetra very innocently picked out an outfit that was cute and suitable for the scorching heat. She had no idea that such a decision would lead to this back and forth debate between her father and school. She just wanted to stay cool at school.
A Huge Clash
Such A Fuss
In one night, her outfit was in everyone’s conversations. The media eventually got involved and this story went viral. The main question everyone was trying to understand was what the difference between her outfit and other girls’ outfits was.
Such A Fuss
Unforeseen Outcome
She did not think that such a scene would erupt just because of her outfit. The situation was far more horrific than she imagined. She was only wearing something comfortable for the heat and this is what it turned into.
Unforeseen Outcome
Unnecessary Humiliation
The summer day took an unexpected turn when she was called out in her first class of the day. He told the class her outfit choice was not suitable for school and humiliated her in front of the entire class. Demetra did not quite understand what about her outfit violated the school guidelines.
Unnecessary Humiliation
Principal Gets Involved
The teacher made a bold and harsh decision and instructed Demetra to go to the principal’s office. Once she got there, he immediately phoned her father Tony and told him to come down immediately. He was not prepared for what this would start.
Principal Gets Involved
A Choice To Be Made
The administrator explained to her father that her outfit choice was against the school’s rules and he had two options. Either her father could bring Demetra another outfit to change to or he could take her home. Tony could not believe what he was hearing from the other end of the phone.
A Choice To Be Made
Playing Along
Tony went along with it and abided by the teacher’s request. He searched through her drawers and picked out a school appropriate change of clothing. This consisted of a pair of shorts and a plain tank top. He was sure this was suitable.
Playing Along
The Battle Is On
Demetra returned to the office after changing her clothing. Her father was sitting with the principal waiting for her return. Unfortunately, the principal said the outfit was still not acceptable and she needed to change. Tony was becoming more infuriated.
The Battle Is On
The Problem
From the beginning, Tony was upset about what was happening but by this point, he was even angrier. He requested that the principal give him an answer for why she wasn’t dressed okay. He even insisted Demetra bend over to prove her shorts were appropriate.
The Problem
Protecting His Daughter
Her father was positive that there had to be more to the story that he was not being told. He was not willing to stop insisting until he got a real explanation. He was quite suspicious but he did not want to believe what his gut was telling him.
Protecting His Daughter
He Wasn’t Satisfied
Tony was told that the dress code violation was simply because her shorts were not long enough. The principal then mentioned a term they use to check if shorts fit the dress code called the “fingertip test.” Tony still felt in his stomach that this was not what was really going on.
He Wasn’t Satisfied
Even Angrier
Tony was annoyed and frustrated by this “fingertip test.” He had seen with his own eyes how short the clothes the other girls wear to school and he didn’t understand why only his daughter was reprimanded. He even saw them wearing these “unacceptable clothing” earlier that day!
Even Angrier
The Fingertip Test
To successfully do the “fingertip” test, the student is required to stand s
For the ‘fingertip test,’ the student needs to stand up straight and place her arms at her sides. If her pants are above her fingertips, they’re too short. Demetra did this and hers were just barely above her fingertips. Tony wasn’t going to stand for this.
The Fingertip Test
The Truth
After so much persisting the principal admitted the truth. Tony wasn’t sure if he misheard her and asked her to repeat herself. Tony was beside himself and could not fully understand what the administrator was saying. Tony was thinking that there had to be a mistake.
The Truth
Regret
The principal regretted what she said right after the words came out of her moth. Unfortunately, she said it, and Tony was not going to take this lightly. The school made it seem like Demetra’s clothing was not appropriate for the dress code but really the problem was that she was distracting the boys in her class.
Regret
Disbelief
Tony could not believe the situation he was in as he sat in the principal’s office. He was upset that his daughter was called out in class and now he got to the bottom of it. The truth made him angrier and wasn’t willing to let it go.
Disbelief3
Using Resources
Tony could not bear to his daughter so distraught. The look in her eyes made him so much and there was no way he could let this go. The administrator was blaming his daughter and Tony was determined to find justice for her. He began to utilize his resources.
Using Resources
Last Choice
The administrator offered one final decision. He told Demetra she could put on leggings or go home. Tony was not going to accept this offer and was about to show the school exactly how unfair he thought it was. They chose the wrong family to mess with.
Last Choice
Unfair Discrimination
Demetra made an interesting note that the shool’s strict dress code was only emphasized with girls and not boys. She felt this wasn’t fair and rather biased. Although there was no hats allowed in class, boys still wore them and teachers never said a word about it.
Unfair Discrimination
Many Others
Tony was trying his best to not freak out but this was extremely difficult for him. He witnessed so many students breaking this rule and it was difficult for him to understand why only the girls were getting punished. If it were everyone he would have felt differently.
Many Others
Unrealistic Rules
The school was setting unrealistic standards for the girls to wear leggings when it was 90 degrees out. It was fair for them to set basic rules, but they needed to be doable. Students needed to have the freedom to wear clothing that would not cause them to profusely sweat.
Unrealistic Rules
Students Agreed
Tony consulted with Demetra’s friends to see their opinion on the school’s dress code. They all agreed that it was sexist and unjust. Boys were free to dress comfortably in such weather conditions while the girls had to endure the boiling heat just to keep the boys from having inappropriate thoughts.
Students Agreed
Involving The Media
Tony decided to take this story viral so he went to the media. He was angry and decided the world should know about the unfair expectations the school was setting. He also wanted the school to pay for how they humiliated Demetra. He was featured on local news channels where he spoke about the incident.
Involving The Media
Parents’ Decision
The media was interested in the story and wanted to know how Tony would fix the controversial issue. He sid that the clothing should be up to the parent’s and it was not the school’s job to enforce such rules on their children’s clothing.
Parents’ Decision
Proposal
In his plan, Tony reeccomended that there be certain modifications to the school’s dress restrictions. He said that it is important to have visibible underwear, visible midriffs, and no spaghetti straps. He was about to touch on a much larger problem
Proposal
Bigger Issue
Most were supportive of Tony, but he also had a few who disagreed. The conflict revealed larger probelms like objectification of women. Many believed that a more lenient dress code would lead to chaos in the schools, and thus dress codes were put to ensure order.
Bigger Issue
The Accusations
Tony accused the school of being sexist and objectifying women and his daughter. The school defended themself by saying that their dress code was enforced to create structure among their students. In reality, there are many other where students and parents feel like dress codes are being implemeted for the wrong reason.
The Accusations
More Cases
Demetra was definitley the first girl to have a problem with a school dress code. Another young girl named Clare ran into an incident when she was attending her first prom ever. The school singled her out and said her outfit sent the wrong message.
More Cases
The Perfect Dress
This 17 year old girl was awaiting her prom night with her boyfriend and was doing everything possible to prepare ahead of time. She was searching for the right dresss for the occasion when she stumbled upon the a sparkly dress of her dreams.
The Perfect Dress
The Dreaded Fingertip Test
SAhe first checked the price tag and was shocked to see it fit in her budget. It was meant to be and she felt it. Unfortunately, one minor detail was important to check. She had to make sure the dress was appropriate for schoool so she did the fingertip test. She stood up straight with her hands by her side and checked the dress length.
The Dreaded Fingertip Test
Prom Dress Code
The invitation for the prom said that the attire was semi-formal, noted that the dresses needed to pass the fingertip test. Clare’s dress just passed the guideliness and she knew it was perfect. When she found this dress she was unaware for the trouble that would arise afterwards.
Prom Dress Code
It Was Time
Finally the night arrived and Clare could not control her excitement. She wanted to be positive that the dress was long enough so checked one last time. This time when she checked, her dress was shorter than before. She was all dressed ands ready to leave and she wasn’t quite sure what to do now.
It Was Time
Being Cautious
Before she left the house, she finished off her outfit with heels and gave one last look in the mirror. The dress just made the cut but she was worried it may go up while she would be dancing. She knew she had to be careful but there was no chance of her changing now.
Being Cautious
Confronted
She got to the loctaion of the prom, which was being held at the local Methodist church. The chaperone stopped her at the door and told her that her dress was far too short. Clare knew her dress passed the fingertip test so she inquired about the rules.
Confronted
Looks Can Be Deceiving
Ann Duncnan was the woman in charge and told Clare that her dress needed to pass teh fingertip test. Clare protested that her dress did follow the rules but since she has long legs it made it seem like it wasn’t okay. It wasn’t the dress’s problem.
Looks Can Be Deceiving
Wouldn’t Budge
Ann did not care about this and wouldn’tr budge. She told Clare that her dress was just too short and did not follow the dress code. Clare had been preparing for this night and she wasn’t willing to let anything ruin it. She even showed Ann how it passed the rule. Ann had no cards left to play and she allowed Clare to enter the dance.
Wouldn’t Budge
Inconsistent Rules
Clare was so happy to be inside the dance but she couldn’t help but look around at the other girls dresses. She noticed that they were wearing dresses much shorter than hers and she found the whole situation pathetic. She started to enjoy the dance when she noticed something unusual happening above her.
Inconsistent Rules
Inappropriate Staring
Clare and her friends were confused by the amount of adults at the dance that year. What was even more uncomfortable was the group of father’s watching them from the balacony. After they noticed this, the situation took a bad turn for Clare.
Inappropriate Staring
Uneasy Feeling
It makes complete sense that these girls were uneasy seeing dads watching them. They were overwhelemd with the amount of chaperones following their every move and more so that they were men. It felt like they were there just to observe girls dancing in short dresses.
Uneasy Feeling
Getting Called Again
Shortly after she entered the dance floor, she was once again confronted with Ann from the entrance. Ann quickly grabbed her off the dance floor and told her about the complaints she was recieveing from the male chaperones. She explained that her dress and dance moves were triggering immoral thoughts.
Getting Called Again
Unacceptable
This was another way for Ann to say “she asked for it.” She was blaming an innocent 17 year old for the gross and immature thoughts of the fathers at the dance. This was not her responsibility and she was motivated to see justice for herself and all the other girls in this situation.
Unacceptable
Enough Is Enough
Clare refused to accept this and even addmitted that she hadn’t been dancing. Her friends supported her and proclaimed that she was telling the truth. Once again, Claire showed that her dress was long enough but Mrs. Duncan did not care anymore. This was when her boyfriend jumped in.
Enough Is Enough
A United Front
Her boyfriend was blown away but the mistreatment Clare was recieving and was not going to stand by and lethis girlfriend be treated like this. He explained that if Clare had to leave then he along with his entire friend group would leave as well. They also insisted on a refund for their tickets.
A United Front
Not Enough
Clare did not care so much about the money and she knew it would not make up for her ruined night. She was devestated, so James asked to speak to the head of teh prom. Ann was so angry and requested backup. Clare did not expect the evening to end up like this.
Not Enough
Escorted Out
Clare imagined the night so many times before and none of it went like this. One rude chaperone ruined the dreams she had made. They were taken out of the prom like they had committed a terrible act when really it was because she had made a presence at the dance.
Escorted Out