A sports law story making the rounds involves the ability of Seminole County high school cheerleaders to wear their cheerleader outfits on game day. Not long ago, the county implemented a stronger dress code that required skirts to be longer than mid-thigh. This code also banned “sexually suggestive” clothing and appeared designed to stop the bare midriff, below-the-waist belt lines in fashion today. Then came the discovery that (NEWS FLASH!) cheerleading outfits have skirts shorter than the dress code allows. And, even worse, cheerleaders want to wear their outfits to school on game days. The principals of the various high schools put their heads together, and concluded that “spirit-building distraction is the intent of having the cheer squad wear outfits to school on game days.”
I can hear the boys of Seminole County now, breathing a sigh of relief that their principals have finally figured out exactly which girls should be allowed to wear short skirts to school to properly develop the boys’ school spirit. And it’s so good to be told that boys should stare at the cheerleaders to ensure the success of the school’s sports teams. Heaven forbid that they would ever stare for other reasons. And heaven forbid that any cheerleader would EVER wear her uniform to school for reasons other than school spirit.