A group of boys at an English high school have taken to wearing skirts in protest of the administration forbidding them from wearing shorts on hot school days.
The BBC reported Thursday that about 30 male students at the ISCA Academy in Exeter participated in the quiet protest after the school’s head teacher, Aimee Mitchell, jokingly suggested the boys could don skirts, instead.
As it stands now, while female students can either wear trousers or a skirt, the school’s dress code says boys must wear trousers, the BBC said. For her part, Ms. Mitchell has said she’s open to amending the dress code but wanted to get input from parents first.
“[W]ith hotter weather becoming more normal, I would be happy to consider a change for the future,” she said, reported the BBC.
According to the ISCA Academy’s website, classes remain in session through July 20, 2017.
The U.K.’s Met Office reported that Wednesday marked the hottest June day in Britain in 40 years, with London’s Heathrow Airport clocking in at a steamy 34.5 degrees Celsius (94 degrees Fahrenheit).
But it seems like relief is in store over the next few days.
“Low pressure will become more dominant in the coming days bringing a change in the weather, with stronger winds and a fresher feel for all,” the Met Office tweeted Thursday.
The Exeter schoolboy protest comes quickly on the heels of a Buckinghamshire man’s similar skirt protest, which the Daily Mail reported Tuesday.
Call center worker Joey Barge was sent home from his job after showing up wearing shorts, so he returned later wearing a hot-pink dress, the Mail reported.
Mr. Barge’s complaints did spur his employer to relent and let gents wear shorts, provided they weren’t too short and were one of three colors: black, navy blue or beige.
Nevertheless, he persisted in his protest.
“Despite the u-turn — which Joey branded a ’partial win’ — he opted to wear the colourful dress for the whole day in an act of defiance against the policy,” the Daily Mail said.
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