As a senior, I have gone through four years in High School, finding my style a little more each year. I prefer more outgoing outfits that tend to be alternative in theme, which has caused a lot of unwanted attention on me from staff as well as students. I have been discriminated against and bullied for the way I look and I want to share my experience and explain why people act this way. Additionally, I want to show that it’s okay to be alternative and that no matter how you dress, you deserve to be treated like a person too!
In middle school I wasn’t really allowed to wear what I really wanted because our school had a uniform, and anytime I wore stuff like hand warmers or jewelry, I was asked to take them off. That’s why I was so excited to make it to high school, so I was able to dress however I wanted. I personally have always expressed myself with the way I look. When I was in a lower place in my life, it felt like it was the only control I had and it was a comfort, as I know it is for many other people.
One of the first memories I have in high school is being barked at and having food thrown at me. My freshman year, a lot of people disliked me solely based on my appearance. While I wasn’t fully developed into a specific style at the time, it didn’t give people the right to bully me the way they did.
I was on the school swim team and untrue rumors were spread about me. The team added me into a “swim group chat” and told me to quit, saying that I didn’t belong. This took a big toll on my mental health, especially since I hadn’t really grown a spine because it was my first year being able to dress freely and I had no experience with being bullied so much. I was incredibly anxious my freshman year and it got so bad that Mr. Geissler had to pull me aside and talk with me.
Around my sophomore year, I became a lot more confident and sure in how I wanted to dress, coming to school wearing more “out there” outfits. At the beginning of the year I sat in the cafeteria, but eventually, I had to move to a teachers’ room because my friends and I got food and insults thrown at us every single day. Sophomore year was the time that staff started discriminating against me as well. Security guards would laugh and snicker at me and a few staff members would target me for dress code “violations,” even though I wasn’t breaking any rules. One day, I wore a dress that went past my fingertips and I had leggings and leg warmers on below. I had a male staff member pull me aside and tell me, “That outfit is too inappropriate for school,” even though I had everything covered. He followed me all the way to student management, watched me as I called my mom in tears and then he followed me to the bathroom to make sure I changed. I personally feel this was going too far on the staff members’ part seeing as though I didn’t break any rules. After this,I still wore what I wanted because that’s how I express myself and that’s what made me happy at the time.
(This is my sophomore year book photo )
Going into junior year, on the first day of school, my first hour teacher refused to let me into their classroom because I was wearing heavy makeup. They called over the same staff member who dress-coded me consistently sophomore year and told me I had to wash my makeup off. I continuously asked them to show me where in the dress code it says anything against heavy makeup since plenty of girls wear enough makeup to make them look completely different. The teacher told me the reason it violated dress code was because if there was an issue they wouldn’t be able to identify me. I had bright blue and purple hair and carried my ID at all times, there was no need to force me to the nurses office to wash it off.
^^ These were some photos from my junior year, the one on the right is from prom!
On picture day, there were people behind me pointing,laughing and making fun of me while I was waiting to get my picture taken. All I heard was,“Who let her out of the house dressed like that” and “She looks so stupid and ugly man,” however I pretended as though I didn’t hear them.
Though I shouldn’t have had to, I’ve learned to just ignore it. Through junior year, my yearn for comfort outweighed my yearn to look cool. Since then, I’ve been wearing a lot more comfortable outfits, however, occasionally I still like to dress up. Most people are scared or uncomfortable with things that stand out, that’s why people feel the need to bully and make fun of other people who are different, even though it’s wrong. I hope that future generations of alternative dressing people have an easier time in school than I did and I hope that the stigma behind dressing uniquely goes away, although I don’t think it will anytime soon, unfortunately. However, If you are an alt person in high school, you are not alone. You deserve to be able to dress how you feel most comfortable. You are awesome, you are you. Stay cool!
Bug/Fish fact of the week!
Phymata pennsylvanica, also known as the Pennsylvanian Ambush Bug, are in a subfamily of assassin bugs called jagged ambush bugs. Pennsyvanian ambush bugs will eat their prey by biting them and injecting their spit, disintegrating the prey’s internal organs so it’s easier to digest! They are also related to Mantids, which makes sense because their two front “legs” are bigger and stronger than the rest of their legs and they use them to hunt, similar to mantids.
