this post was submitted on 21 May 2026
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me_irl
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I’m gonna go ahead and blame schools for being so strictly anti-hat. Kids would get in trouble for wearing them. Head-coverings in general were forbidden unless they were religious in nature, so many kids never got a chance to get used to wearing them.
It made me feel strange seeing so many kids’ shows with characters that wear hats all the time. Hats were like a forbidden accessory in my childhood, and now even though I’m out in the “adult world,” they feel too weird to even try.
See you know what's funny? In my early school years, hats were mandatory. I got bought a dorky thing that got me made fun of, and I hated it.
I now have a complex where I feel weird about wearing hats.
My daughter's k-8 school here in California actually allows hats. Kinda blew my mind.
Can you explain what you mean "being anti-hat"? In my school they just had an issue with hats being worn indoors, which i think is reasonable.
What's wrong with wearing hats indoors?
Comes from the same origins as removing your shoes at the door, I'd imagine. Considered proper guest etiquette or some other Victorian era nonsense like that.
I do prefer people taking shoes off at the door.
Okay but shoes are about not bring dirt and mud from the ground inside. Whatever is coming in on my hat is also coming in on my shirt and pants.
Hats are older than floors? I guess?
No it's just nonsense
I get an uncomfortable moment through basically every door and have to remind myself it's ok to wear hats indoors.
I genuinely have no idea where this comes from, but it's super ingrained. It feels vaguely connected to hospitality and has a chivalry vibe.
I'm fairly new to being a hat person though, so it could be gitters.
I don’t usually correct people’s spelling, but seeing jitters spelled with a G gives me the heebie jeebies.
I was taught, as a child in the '70s and '80s, that only women could wear hats at meals and in church. Later, in the military, it's a rule while in uniform that hats must be worn outdoors and may not be worn indoors unless you are armed.
It still strikes me as very unprofessional when police leave their headwear in the vehicle, and a little "off" when people are eating indoors with hats on.
Not to mention all the hat etiquette in Western countries up until the '60s: https://youtu.be/zePIkXSB1kA
kind of like wearing sunglasses indoors. It's unnecessary and can cover your eyes
Can't speak for OP, but where I lived there was a big problem with gangs and specifically youth gangs. Certain hats could be a marker of affiliation with one gang or another, and people at school got targeted for it.. Thus, in the infinite wisdom of the public education system, hats were universally banned. We had the same issue with solid colored shirts, but at least then it was just red and blue that were forbidden.
It ultimately did nothing to address the problem, because gang affiliation markers would just move on to the next thing. If they couldn't find a way to express it through obvious clothing, it would be with accessories or jewelry or hairstyles, etc.
Nah, my school didn't care about hats. But my head's always been pretty big. Not figuratively.