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Rabat - As the new school year has started, young Moroccan internet users reopened the heated debate regarding the country’s school uniforms and dress code policy, with many saying that they are biased and only target female students.

In most Moroccan schools, girls are required to wear white lab coats whereas boys are not, a policy that was deemed by many to be sexist and discriminatory.

“Tabliya [the white lab coat in Arabic] looks ridiculous and is sexist. So to be fair I think every school should have a uniform for both genders,” said a Moroccan Reddit user.

Many, notably girls, expressed their objection to the policy and argued that it should apply to both genders. “I never wore mine and had to explain to the principal every morning that as long as the boys weren't required to wear tablia I wouldn't either,” a female Reddit user said.

“I think it's stupid. Either apply the dress code for both sexes or don't,” another said.

Some argued that such policies might have a negative impact on girls’ mental health, confidence, and self-perception. “That is why growing up girls thinks that they should always be hidden and shouldn't express their opinions or needs,” another said.

Another Reddit user said: “It always made [me] so mad to have to wear it and not boys ... it’s so so disrespectful I find it demeaning and not fair !!” She argued that it encourages the premise that female students need to cover up to prevent boys from being distracted during school. “It pushes people to think that girls should always cover [themselves] and not for boys to control themselves. Such a bad influence,” she stressed.

The majority of commenters demanded that female students be treated with respect and seen as equal participants in the educational system, rather than sexual objects that need to be covered. But others supported the current dress code policy, arguing that it encourages modesty and protects girls from sexual harassment. “Tablia is a statement that shouts ‘this girl is a minor’, there's no reason for shallow childish anger over a piece of garment that protects young women,” a commenter argued.

Not the first time

Last April, a Moroccan mother took to Facebook to complain that her 14-year-old daughter was banned from her classroom for wearing an above-the-knee dress. The school administration called the mother to notify her that her daughter was banned for wearing “indecent” clothes and requested she bring her daughter “proper clothes” to be allowed back into the classroom.

The incident sparked widespread controversy and heated debate among Moroccans, with many criticizing the school’s dress code policy. Many sided with the school’s decision, arguing that students and school staff should adhere to the dress code policies and dress up “appropriately” when entering educational institutions.

Others, however, denounced the school’s decision to deny the teenage girl entry to the classroom and viewed the move as a violation of personal freedom and gender equality. Several activists and associations followed suit and challenged dress code policies that target female students.

School dress code policies have been receiving backlash across the world for perpetuating sexism against female students, notably in the United States.

Source: Morocco World News.

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