Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development Volume 34 Issue 2 Volume 34, Spring 2021, Issue 2 Article 5 Why Don't We All Just Wear Robes? Ruthann Robson Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/jcred This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development by an authorized editor of St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. ROBSON MACRO.DOCX (DO NOT DELETE) 3/7/21 4:06 PM WHY DON’T WE ALL JUST WEAR ROBES? RUTHANN ROBSON1 INTRODUCTION Lawyers and law professors select our professional outfits each day, often experiencing a mix of consternation and gratification. The dread springs from our failures: to know what constitutes the “right look;” to be able to achieve that “right look;” to anticipate what the day will bring; to have prepared by doing the laundry or other tasks. The joy resides in self-expression; we fashion ourselves as works of art, even within the constraints of professional attire. It could have been different. We could have sacrificed the satisfaction of self-expression for the complacency of conformity; we could wear robes. Judges—at least when they are on the bench—are relieved from the obligation of selecting their attire as they are denied their individu- ality. But the history and current controversies of robes, for judges and others, is not so simple. Professional dress in classrooms and court- rooms shares the common ancestry of academic and legal robes, both of which are related to the dress of religious clerics.