United Airlines sparked controversy on Twitter after refusing to let two teenage girls in leggings board a flight, and a younger girl was forced to change into a dress. Shannon Watts tweeted about the situation, saying she came across girls from different families, wearing leggings, who were told they could not board their flight unless they changed or put a dress on over their leggings.
Despite facing extreme criticism, United Airlines defended the action, citing their Contract of Carriage document, which cites “passengers that are barefoot or not properly clothed” as a safety concern, although not explicitly saying anything about leggings or spandex. Additionally, these passengers are said to have been flying on employee passes and thus needed to follow the employee dress code. However, this dress code seems to explicitly target women and young girls. United allows for casual dress but not “form-fitting lycra/spandex tops, pants and dresses.”
A spokesperson for United confirmed this situation did occur and that it is a part of their policy, saying,”It’s not that we want our standby travelers to come in wearing a suit and tie or that sort of thing. We want people to be comfortable when they travel as long as it’s neat and in good taste for that environment.”
All of this has occurred after United has actually advertised leggings as appropriate attire.
If your yoga routine’s feeling routine, find new places to say Ommm. #InternationalYogaDay https://t.co/mEDzx1aHBk pic.twitter.com/TNfNgS0OtO
— United (@united) June 21, 2016
The hypocrisy of this situation reflect underlying attitudes about girls and women. Keep in mind that these were young girls and a child who were considered “distasteful.” This is not about whether or not they were dressed professionally but, rather, if they were deemed appropriate. According to Shannon Watts, the youngest girl’s father was wearing shorts several inches above the knee, which were not prohibited on the flight. This exposes not only a sexist dress code but also how society views girls’ bodies and clothing as sexual from a young age and how policing girls’ attire is entirely acceptable.
Dress codes that deem comfortable clothes for women “inappropriate” can be seen around the nation. School dress codes have recently faced criticism for banning leggings and having unreasonable requirements for shirt and skirt length. Girls’ fashion trends and clothes that are the easiest to find are often deemed the least appropriate. These dress codes particularly target young girls, letting girls know that their bodies have been deemed inappropriate at a young age. Over sexualization of these girls from a young age normalizes sexual harassment and abuse of children, implying it is okay to see young girls’ bodies as inherently sexual. It also twists conception of body image, not allowing children to stay children and feel comfortable in their environments- be their environments professional, academic, or casual.
Policies and attitudes like these contribute to an over all message that a girl’s body is not hers. Without their consent, these girls are objectified and then held accountable for society’s perverse views. In truth, leggings are not sexual. Girls bodies are not sexual. And sometimes, as women, we would like to be comfortable on an airplane without being objectified.
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