Skirts are not just for little Suzy anymore.
In response to pressures from “diversity” campaigners in the United Kingdom, dozens of schools have introduced “gender neutral” uniform codes in order to be more sensitive to children who “identify” as the opposite sex. The ultra-progressive policies would allow, and some say encourage, boys as young as five years old to “come out” as transgender and wear skirts to class.
According to The Daily Mail UK, around 40 public secondary and 40 public primary schools have changed their uniform policies by either dropping references to boys and girls altogether, or changing them to state that students “can dress in the uniform in which they feel most comfortable.”
The “gender neutral” policies have come in the wake of diversity campaigners’ warning that schools’ “current policies risk discriminating against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pupils.”
One of the first schools to implement the “gender neutral” dress codes is Allens Croft School in Birmingham, a public primary school.
Their policy states that “boys can wear a grey or black skirt or pinafore,” a sleeveless garment worn over a dress, “while girls can wear grey or black trousers.” The goal of the policy is “to promote each child’s right to express their gender and personality in whichever way feels right for them,” according to the school.
“Everybody has the right to be themselves – that was the impetus for it,” Paula Weave, the head of Allens Croft School, told The Sunday Times. “We do lots of work through literature and drama and we talk to children about the fact we have someone who was assigned male at birth who is saying ‘I’m a girl’. It’s about being open with them and about everyone feeling OK.”
Educate and Celebrate, a charity which has received money from the Department of Education, has helped foster the new policies. Founder Elly Barnes argues that the changes have been seamless.
“In some schools, when I have the initial staff meeting and talk about gender-neutral uniforms, the reaction is ‘We can’t do it, parents won’t like it’. But as soon as they do it, they find out there is absolutely no difference,” said Barnes.
“You don’t get boys coming in to schools suddenly wearing skirts. But it just gives that space for it not to be an issue if there are trans kids,” added Barnes.
Of course, the policy alterations haven’t come without controversy and pushback. Christian groups in particular have suggested that the move is insinuating a political agenda, and have raised concerns that the changes will only help confuse impressionable young children.
“We are increasingly seeing boundaries being overstepped and it is concerning,” said Andrea Williams of Christian Concern.
A source told The Daly Mail that Educate and Celebrate “received funding for training staff to deal with transphobic bullying – not to help implement uniform policies.”
As it has in the United States, the gender-obsession has been mounting within the UK. In March, The Daily Wire reported that children entering preschool, as young as four years of age, were being asked to “choose” their gender.
There is seemingly no end in sight.