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Time to scrap toxic school uniforms
By Ni Tao |
February 22, 2013, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
DURING my teen years, almost all schools observed the flag-raising ritual on Monday, a solemn occasion in which every student was obliged to wear identical uniforms.
In those days it was a drab scene of schoolchildren wearing poorly designed and styleless uniforms reminiscent of earlier times of scarcity.
Those who didn't conform to the dress code would be scolded by teachers. The rigid insistence on school uniforms still haunts me, and I pity the kids today. Why, in a great age of pluralism, do they still have to be attired in the same bland way, devoid of freedom of choice?
Now, it seems kids don't lose just freedom but may also lose their health by wearing those garments. It is reported that school uniforms made by a Shanghai clothing company recently failed quality tests - the fourth time in three years. Several batches of products contained a toxic dye known as a cancer agent.
Our children are exposed to poisonous food, filthy air and now toxic clothing. And the list of health hazards will likely go on.
A commentator named Xu Juan wrote for Xinhua that the toxic uniforms predisposed them to be cynical about social trust at a young age. They would be dismayed to know that flawed uniforms they are compelled to wear generate considerable kickbacks for those who place orders for them, she added.
Our children may be delicate, but not as naive as Xu thought. They may not know the word "kickback" and the dirty trade behind it, but it's easy for them to see unfairness. Why hasn't a company with odious quality records been punished and lost its license, while they get chided for not being "properly" dressed?
In those days it was a drab scene of schoolchildren wearing poorly designed and styleless uniforms reminiscent of earlier times of scarcity.
Those who didn't conform to the dress code would be scolded by teachers. The rigid insistence on school uniforms still haunts me, and I pity the kids today. Why, in a great age of pluralism, do they still have to be attired in the same bland way, devoid of freedom of choice?
Now, it seems kids don't lose just freedom but may also lose their health by wearing those garments. It is reported that school uniforms made by a Shanghai clothing company recently failed quality tests - the fourth time in three years. Several batches of products contained a toxic dye known as a cancer agent.
Our children are exposed to poisonous food, filthy air and now toxic clothing. And the list of health hazards will likely go on.
A commentator named Xu Juan wrote for Xinhua that the toxic uniforms predisposed them to be cynical about social trust at a young age. They would be dismayed to know that flawed uniforms they are compelled to wear generate considerable kickbacks for those who place orders for them, she added.
Our children may be delicate, but not as naive as Xu thought. They may not know the word "kickback" and the dirty trade behind it, but it's easy for them to see unfairness. Why hasn't a company with odious quality records been punished and lost its license, while they get chided for not being "properly" dressed?
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