First off: Hello everyone! My school year has started off with a quick bang and I’ve gotten extremely better with my mental health since moving schools. If I never said it on here: I’m an educator in my city and work in high schools as a paraprofessional, or a teacher’s assistant. This blurb is worth the read for the rest of this, I promise you.

So long story short, my school is semi-lax on the clothing standard of it’s students so you’re bound to seeing girls in crop tops and open-toed shoes to boys in tank tops and skirts (And yes, they can fight so don’t even say nothing derogatory to them). This would be the “progressive’s paradise” if you look at it like everyone just forgets the years of gender disassembly with authoritarian warfare looking like “girls must cover themselves or the boys won’t control themselves! I see this more as a step in the right direction, but without the right feet.

I’d like us, meaning parents and educators, to instead of policing the girls to “prevent sexual harassment” to instead start teaching the boys to…not sexually harass?

That such a wild concept?

I’ve always been an opponent of applying the social band-aid of “anti-rape plans and a hidden pair of keys as a weapon” and would rather we get into the ENTIRE face of our youth males on how to properly respect the girl’s choices in clothing or behavior without resulting to wanton cavemen-ism. I don’t think we talk enough on the real dangers of self-motivated thinking that women are meant to either be property or abolished. It starts at home so don’t think I’m letting you off the hook either, parents!

Now, you’re reading this like I’m 100 percent telling you “all boys need to do is learn” blah blah. Sexual harassment can also come from girls or ANYONE and us as parents need to begin teaching what it is. Such as “What do we do if she isn’t into you?” or “If she’s wearing a skimpy dress, what does that mean for you?”

Not. A. Damn. Thing.

We need to erase the time of “wooing a woman” or “Perfume that’ll turn him on to you” and simply create the generation that knocks the sexual assault numbers all the way down! Create a much better world by allowing our children to be taught about mutual respect.

Because I’m not losing my child’s mental health to an idiot who won’t teach their son/daughter that she doesn’t want you without getting that eye back. Trust me.