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Four Brighton boys wore skirts to school when they were denied the right to wear shorts on the hottest day of the year.
Four boys in Brighton, England, were turned away from school after showing up on the hottest day of the year in shorts that didn't fit the mandated dress code. But instead of returning in the required pants, they came back wearing the uniform skirts authorized for girls.
In England, most schools use a gender-neutral uniform. However, girls are allowed a shorter skirt in the summer, while boys usually wear pants or shorts.
The group of 14 year-olds, Michael Parker, Kodi Ailing, George Boyland, and Jesse Stringer, of Longhill High School, thought they weren't breaking any rules when they decide to switch up their uniform.
Parker's mother spoke to Metro, explaining that her son and his friends were victims of an unfair dress code that allowed girls to remain cool in the heat, but suffocated boys.
"On Tuesday, the hottest day of the year so far, several of the boys went in to school in regulation PS shorts with a school logo on," she said. "They were all told to go home and put trousers on and told they are not allowed to wear shorts, even though girls are allowed to wear short skirts with bare legs and stay cool."
She continued, "It's discriminatory against boys --why should they be punished? The school doesn't let them have a drink of water during class and the rooms aren't air conditioned. It's quite hypocritical, as well as all the male teachers were wearing shorts and T-shirts."
The mini protest prompted the school head, Kate Mills, to allow boys to wear skirts at the school. "Students can choose to wear any part of the agreed school uniform," she told Metro.
