Diversity and Fashion Powerhouses... Concerns Over Uniform 'School Uniform' Mandate

French First Lady's Supportive Remarks Spark Controversy

Brigitte Macron, the First Lady of France and wife of President Emmanuel Macron, expressed support for the mandatory wearing of school uniforms, signaling the potential ignition of a 'school uniform mandate debate' within France.

In a Q&A session with readers conducted by the French media outlet Le Parisien on the 12th (local time), when asked by a middle school student, "What do you think about school uniforms?" Mrs. Macron responded, "I support wearing them at school as long as they are simple and not too dull."

A former teacher, Mrs. Macron shared that she had a satisfying experience wearing a school uniform during her childhood and explained that uniforms eliminate differences among students, preventing waste of time and money.

Born in 1953, Mrs. Macron is a veteran teacher who taught Latin for 20 years in high school. She also belongs to the 'uniform generation,' having attended school before the practice of wearing uniforms was abolished in French public schools following the so-called '68 Revolution' in 1968.

School Uniform
Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, the mandatory school uniform issue has recently become a hot topic in French politics. The far-right party 'Rassemblement National' (RN) is pushing a policy to mandate school uniforms in all French schools. RN argues that if all students wear uniforms, it would end the 'competition' among students to wear the most expensive, luxurious, and fashionable clothes.

However, the French government holds a skeptical stance on this matter. Pap Ndiaye, the Minister of Education, recently stated, "If schools want, students can wear uniforms," but expressed reluctance to enforce uniform wearing through legislation.

School Uniforms Are a Global Hot Issue... Shorts in the UK, Uniform Cost Debate in Korea

Brigitte Macron, First Lady of France / Photo by AFP Yonhap News

The school uniform debate has arisen not only in France but also in several other countries. Unlike France, the United Kingdom, another European country where middle and high school students wear uniforms, has experienced a different kind of uniform controversy.

During the record-breaking heatwave in the UK in 2018, male students protested the school rule prohibiting shorts by wearing school skirts to school. Subsequently, many schools revised their rules to allow male students to choose school shorts, and recently, unisex uniform designs that both male and female students can wear have been introduced.

In Korea, a recent controversy arose over the cost of uniforms at an elementary school. It was confirmed that the uniform purchase cost at a private elementary school in Busan ranged from 1.2 million to 1.5 million KRW, prompting collective opposition from parents. Ultimately, the school held a meeting with parents to listen to public opinion and plans to decide on the uniform price issue.