A quick scroll on Instagram during the anxiety-inducing prom season can introduce you to “prom dress pages”, where students, mostly female students, submit pictures of their dresses before prom. Why? To ensure they arrive at the event as the only ones wearing those outfits. Although these Instagram accounts may seem harmless, they encourage humiliation and promote a self-seeking mindset that is detrimental to young girls, advancing a harmful American culture of rivalry and insecurity.  

American individualism is translated into prom dress pages, placing shame on high school girls that accidentally match dresses. After months of searching for the perfect dress, you become caught up in a contest of good looks, an unreasonable rivalry where only one of you can look the best. We need to change our mindset about prom attire and the need to look exceptional. Prom dress pages encouraging the humiliation of merely sharing dresses takes away from the purpose of dances. 

Individualistic prom dress pages stimulate competition and self-doubt, distracting from the collective aspect of prom. There is no concept of “sharing” in America, whether it comes to wealth, goods, or even prom dresses. As a result, students worry about matching, rather than relaxing. The unhealthy need to be distinct continues the pressure of being different, provoking insecurity. Every corner of America is stained with individualism, even the most crucial night of high school.

Prom should be about building new relationships with your community and having fun, not appearance and competition. Buy the dress you love, even if it’s “claimed” on the Instagram page.