Officials at Wasatch High School in Utah are defending a controversial policy of making photo edits to yearbook photos of several girls who's outfits were deemed to have
violated the dress code policy:
"I was shocked," said sophomore Kimberly Montoya, whose sleeveless blouse appeared in the yearbook with short sleeves added.
Sophomore Shelby Baum found a square neckline drawn over her v-neck tee, and her collarbone tattoo was erased from the photo.
The girls say they felt humiliated:
Montoya said the retouched photos reflect a school culture where modesty standards are wielded to "humiliate" girls.
The school is reevaluating how to enforce the photo dress code in the future, but say students were
notified of the possibility when the photos were taken:
Last fall when yearbook photos were taken, a large sign (4 feet by 5 feet) was placed where students could see it before having their photo taken. The sign told students that school dress standards would be enforced. Tank tops, low cut tops, inappropriate slogans on shirts, etc. would not be allowed. If a student violated this policy, the sign told them explicitly that the photos may be edited to correct the violation. The sign was plainly visible to all students who were having their photos taken.
Hopefully they will clarify the policy moving forward because the girls said it was
selectively enforced:
Photos of other girls wearing almost identical clothing were not edited at all.
And some of the clothing edited to be more modest apparently meets the schools dress code, the girls said, because they have worn the same clothes to school on other occasions without an issue.