Gardena School Dress Code Protest Fizzles; Principal Promises Talks

Two small student walkouts over a new dress code at Peary Junior High School in Gardena, which were to be capped with a sit-in by protesters Friday, were defused when Principal Alvin L. Hayes Sr. offered to discuss the new standards with the students after the Christmas holidays.

The group of about 20 students had planned the demonstration for the last day before Christmas break, but classmates failed to join them in a walkout scheduled for after roll call.

“I think they were afraid,” said Michele Martinez, 13, who waited with other students for more than an hour for their classmates to join them. “There were police everywhere.”

Two unmarked Gardena police cars and four patrol cars were sent to the campus after school security officials requested backup, said Lt. David Morgan of the Gardena Police Department.

The protests were prompted by a revised dress code imposed by the school’s shared-decision-making council--a group of parents, teachers, community members, the principal and one student.

Nearly 180 students walked out Tuesday, and about 15 students walked out Wednesday, Hayes said. Students said more protesters scaled fences to get off campus on both days.

The dress code, which went into effect Monday, prohibits such clothing as tops that expose bare midriffs, garments printed with suggestive language, and items associated with gangs, including hats, hair nets, bandannas and gloves.

Hayes said school officials will contact parents individually to determine whether students who left school will be disciplined. Marilyn Holmes, who said she helped instigate the walkouts, said she had already been suspended.

Students objected most vehemently to restrictions banning a single earring, which school officials said is sometimes a symbol of gang affiliation, and clothing with holes, including blue jeans with tears.

“Earrings are not a gang statement; they’re a fashion statement,” said Patrick Martinez, Michele’s 14-year-old brother, who sported an earring in his left lobe.

But music teacher Patsy Payne, who spoke with some of the protesters Friday, argued that the code is reasonable and necessary. Payne said a few students overstep the boundaries of good taste with such items as T-shirts that say “Let’s Do the Wild Thing,” and jeans with holes that expose underwear or bare skin.

“We’re looking at Fruit of the Looms all day,” Payne said.

Student body President Majardi Pruitt also tried to reason with the students, arguing that a demonstration was the wrong approach and that protesters should discuss their objections with the principal. Pruitt, the student member of the council that instituted the code, said a survey had been sent to each homeroom for feedback on the code before it was imposed. But several students said they had not seen it.

Some students had permission from their parents or legal guardians to participate in a demonstration--and a few parents even showed up to offer their support.

One such parent was Marge Miller, who stood briefly in front of the school with her two children, Carrie Miller, 12, and Kenneth Shearen, 14, to await the demonstration. The three left when it became apparent that the protest would not happen.

“I don’t see anything wrong with the way the kids dress,” Miller said. “As long as they get here and as long as they get their academics, that’s what I care about.”