Jenice Armstrong: Morehouse bans high heels, handbags... & jeans?

By Jenice Armstrong
Philadelphia Daily News

Daily News Columnist

A MOREHOUSE MAN in a dress?

Come again?

When people think of a Morehouse man, the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., filmmaker Spike Lee and other luminaries come to mind.

Not Miss Jay from "America's Next Top Model."

The administrators at Morehouse aren't having that, as the saying goes. To keep the legendary Morehouse mystique alive, the all-male, historically black college has banned high heels, handbags, tunics, tops and other feminine clothing.

Sagging jeans, grills, do-rags and caps worn indoors aren't permitted on the Atlanta campus, either. Students can't even wear blue jeans to major events - not even expensive designer brands. The punishment for noncompliance is a possible suspension. Administrators say that they're trying to raise "well-rounded Renaissance men" and prepare students for the harsh realities of the workplace.

It shouldn't be a big deal to expect males to show up in something besides baggy jeans, T-shirts, hoodies and sneakers - the unofficial uniform of American youth. We have gotten overly relaxed in how we present ourselves. Studies show that there's a connection between how you're dressed and your behavior, which is why high school uniforms and strict dress codes are such a good idea.

Still, colleges campuses are supposed to be places where students can express new ideas and push boundaries, at least a little. If you don't experiment as an undergraduate, when are you going to? Students at most campuses have the luxury of showing up for class in a pair of pajama bottoms or can slouch around an entire semester in sweatpants. Young people have the rest of their lives to button up in a necktie and suit and make like Farnsworth Bentley. They should enjoy the less restrictive atmosphere of college life while they can. Experiment a little. Take a few chances.

During the summer of my junior year, I traipsed around New York City in a shift that was little more than a tunic top that I'd bought from a street vendor. I was living in a New York University dormitory adjacent to Washington Square Park and channeling my inner struggling artist. When I tried to wear that same dress back at home, I was forbidden to leave the house. Yeah, I made some silly choices, but I learned.

Morehouse's dress code doesn't leave much room for such choices. Carrie Jacobs, executive director of the Attic Youth Center, which assists local transgender and gay young people, thinks that's a shame. "I really feel it's discriminatory," she told me. "There are transgender people who cannot wear what they feel comfortable in. It's like we are censuring who people can be. . . . What are they really trying to get at by this? And do they realize that they are impacting a population of students that may be struggling with these issues? . . . Do we really want to limit young people expressing who they are?"

But old traditions die hard, especially at a place like Morehouse.

"When you think of tradition and mystique at Morehouse College, you have to respect that," pointed out Kuran Williams, 29, of West Philly, who graduated from the school in 2002. "It's not a public university. It's a private school."

Williams added: "It kind of diminishes the reputation to have a man walking around campus with stilettos and a Gucci bag."

Send e-mail to heyjen@phillynews. com. My blog: http://go.philly.com/ heyjen.

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