LGBT-friendly uniforms For elementary school, choose shorts or skirts freely. January 10, 11:16
Elementary schools in Miyama City, Fukuoka Prefecture, have decided to introduce uniforms that allow them to freely choose shorts or skirts regardless of gender, in order to take into account sexual minority children called LGBT.
It is Setaka Elementary School which integrates three elementary schools in Miyama-shi and introduces new uniforms in April.
On the 9th, the Board of Education of the city held a conference and explained the reasons for the selection.
The new uniform is a unisex blazer, and the shorts and skirts are designed to be indistinguishable, with the length of the trousers being slightly longer to match the skirt, so that both can be freely selected regardless of gender.
The target is a new first grader who will enter in April, and the second to sixth graders will wear uniforms of the elementary school before integration.
Regarding the choice of uniforms, schools, parents, and local councils have been discussing with adults, and at the stage of examining the functionality of the clothes, there was an opinion calling for consideration for LGBT children.
All elementary schools have introduced uniforms in Miyama City, but it is the first time that you can choose shorts or skirts freely.
According to the Prefectural Board of Education, they have never heard of introducing such uniforms at elementary schools in the prefecture.
"It is important for children to be able to choose their uniform freely, and we want to promote education that recognizes diversity using this uniform as a trigger," said Ikuyo Fujioka, a supervisor of the Miyama City Board of Education.