(Oct. 7) - When it comes to picking out an outfit to wear to school, there's a fine line between self-expression and unnecessary distraction.
One Georgia high school has decided that one of its 16-year-old male students crossed that line, and has asked him to start dressing in a more "manly" fashion, The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.
Jonathan Escobar had recently transferred to North Cobb High School in Kennesaw, Ga. and immediately caused quite a stir among students and staff with his penchant for wearing wigs, makeup, skinny jeans, vintage tops and women's flats.
Groups of kids gathered around him in the cafeteria, and the school's assistant principal even blamed a fight on Escobar's flamboyant attire.
On his third day at the school, during which Escobar was wearing pink wig, he approached by a school official and told that his choice was to either stop dressing in such a feminine manner or consider home-schooling.
Citing a school dress code that prohibits students from wearing clothing that may "contribute to a disruption of school functions," the school stands by its decision to confront Escobar on his outfits, The Atlanta Journal Constitution says.
Meanwhile, a student group on Facebook called "Support Jonathan" has grown to over 1,000 members. Organizers have printed bright pink T-shirts emblazoned with those words which many students plan to wear to school to show their displeasure, the paper said.
As for Escobar, he sees the school's edict as a an infringement on his creative expression.
"If I can't express myself, I won't go to school," he told the Atlanta Journal Constitution, "I want to get the message out there that because this is who I am, I can't get an education."
For more on the story, read the article in The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
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2009-10-07 13:37:56

there's a fine line between self-expression and unnecessary distraction