Uniforms

I've gotten to thinking about uniforms. Maybe I'm obsessing because I am desperately awaiting my cheerleading uniform, but still. Is a uniform really a plaid skirt and button down top that one is expected to wear the same way every single day? If we all wore the same thing, would we really stop judging each other by appearance and focus on personality?
Style shows force us to fear. Are we projecting the right image? Do our outsides match what is inside? As a complex person, it is difficult to express your full self in a few items of clothing. And yet as a society we are obsessed with how we look, that we present ourselves in a certain manner and that people know exactly who we are and what we stand for by looking at us.
So uniforms. They're supposed to level the playing field. If we no longer have a physical outlet of expression maybe we'll actually interact with each other rather than making judgements based on appearance.
Alright, I'll admit it. I love uniforms. I love the idea that an outfit can connect you to a group of people and really righteous idea. I understand the counter arguments about stifling self expression, but isn't it really self expression when you are given the same pieces of clothing as everyone else and make it your own? Teen magazine have at least one or two articles a year about how to accessorize a uniform in order to individualize it. I feel that uniforms are about being a part of something bigger, yet there is still room to be oneself.

Images Via: becausei'maddicted and cupcakes and cashmere