SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Wednesday October 14, 2015 – Boys can now wear skirts to school following changes to the uniform code announced by Puerto Rico’s Education Minister.
Education Secretary Rafael Roman said on Monday the changes are intended to make the US island territory’s strict uniform policy more lesbian, gay and transgender (LGBT) inclusive and less restrictive.
All students are required to wear school uniforms by the Puerto Rico Department of Education, with exemptions only provided for students on medical grounds.
Prior to the implementation of the relaxed uniform rules, all girls at public schools on the island wore skirts and boys wore pants.
Under the new rules, however, students of any gender can choose to wear either a skirt or trousers to school without risk of punishment.
While the new regulation is primarily designed to be more LGBT-friendly, it applies to all students, not just those who identify as LGBT, and bans teachers from disciplining boys for wearing skirts or girls for wearing trousers.
“No student can be sanctioned for not opting to wear a particular piece of clothing … that he or she does not feel comfortable with,” Roman told reporters.
The controversial move has unleashed a hot debate in the socially conservative island territory.
Gay rights activists and some school officials praised the new regulation, which comes months after Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla signed an executive order prohibiting bullying in public schools based on a student’s sexual orientation.
Critics of the measure nevertheless accused government officials of acting like dictators and stripping parents of their power, according to the Associated Press.
“Once again, this government and the Department of Education work against what’s best for our children,” said officials with Alerta Puerto Rico, a group that says it was founded to promote family and childhood values.
Roman argues that parents have the final word on how their children dress for school since they’re the ones buying the uniform. He added that several school districts on the US mainland have adopted similar regulations.
Garcia’s administration previously approved several measures in favour of the gay community, including one that allows transgender and transsexual people to change their gender on their driver’s license and another that protects their rights when seeking medical services.
Same-sex marriage came to the US island territory this year, after the US Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage is a constitutional right.
A subsequent court order brought weddings into effect in mid-July, with the first weddings on July 17.