Dress Code

Re "District Dress Code Back in Fashion in O.C." on Oct. 29: As a student who wears plain old clothing and has never been stopped for my clothes by school administrators, I am divided over this issue. The dress code is something I do not really care about because it does not affect me, but some of my peers are against it. I stand by them for expressing their beliefs and thoughts. Individuality of people is very important and makes living each day seem unique because everyone is different.

No, it wasn't an autograph party for her new book, "Sex." Madonna simply did what no charity's honorary chairperson has done in the history of fund-raisers. Not only did she not give a speech, she removed her jacket and bared her breasts for an audience of nearly 6,000 at a fund-raiser for AmFAR (American Foundation for AIDS Research) Thursday night at the Shrine Auditorium. The video picture, magnified on two gigantic screens, also included her smile with a metal cap on one front tooth.

Any time we're talking about the image of the NBA, we're talking about the perception of the African American male. So there's no way around the topic of race and its role in the league's new dress code. Not when almost 80% of the players are black, according to figures through last season. But it's too simplistic to say this is strictly a matter of Commissioner David Stern trying to wipe out the hip-hop wear so he can package the league to White America.

Area schools have tried to limit gang activity on their campuses by banning some of the clothes most often associated with gangs. Some bans go as far asprohibiting all types of hats and baggy pants. Are such clothing bans effective? And are they difficult to enforce? H. J. Green: Principal, Polytechnic High , Long Beach I think it's effective in the sense that it keeps some of the more obvious gang-related confrontations from taking place.

The Azusa Unified School District board has approved a new dress code for students that applies to clothing, jewelry and hairstyles worn on campus or at student activities. The code prohibits attire that depicts obscenity, promotes the use of drugs or alcohol or indicates affiliation with a gang.

Principals of elementary and middle schools here may impose mandatory uniform dress codes if parents overwhelmingly agree, the school board decided Thursday. District officials said many parents have been urging them to adopt uniforms. Under the policy, any family that could not afford to pay for a uniform would be eligible for financial help from the school. In addition, principals would be required to give parents six months' notice should they decide to impose a uniform dress code.

In the four years of high school that each student endures, we often find ourselves being restricted and overpowered by school authorities. In the case of the new dress code at Thousand Oaks High School, many of my fellow students believed the school district had no right to put boundaries on our outward appearance. Many of them also believed that the slight irrationality of the recent protest demonstration was necessary to get a point across. We understand that our safety in school is the main reason for the dress code and, understandably, we are also concerned for our safety.

The wearing of jeans, shorts and T-shirts by teachers and other staffers would be prohibited under a dress code to be discussed today by Santa Ana Unified School District trustees. The proposal is being criticized by some who say that such regulations are misdirected and unnecessary. "I don't think a teacher should dress like a slob," said Eileen Mahmoud, who teachers first and second grade at Jackson Elementary School.

Coming from a time when such a dress code as Disneyland's was accepted in all business, I find no difficulty with it and, if I were not handicapped in a manner that keeps me from working, I would love to have one of those jobs for senior citizens that Disneyland offers. It would open up my horizons tremendously. There is also need to talk about the dress code in the context of modern standards. Disneyland is not a run-of-the-mill commercial venture. It is show business, and its employees are the cast.

A jacket and tie is standard for any man on the floor of the House, but the dress code says nothing about shorts, as Rep. Jack Quinn (R-N.Y.) proved Wednesday. "They said you need a tie and a coat and I qualify," he told a group of reporters aghast at the sight of his casual attire. He also wore deck shoes without socks.