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In karate and in taekwondo, I know that you are supposed to wear a white gi to represent cleaness of mind and purity of spirit. But what I don't get, are the schools that wear red, blue, or black gi. Can anyone explain this to me? Or are those schools just mcdojo/mcdojang? I think that there are some martial arts that use colored gi, but I am not sure.

At my former dojang, I remember that we were issued white in the beginning and then once we became black belts we could wear a black dobok or a white dobok with a black trim. Then once you became 2nd Dan, you could wear the blue dobok. 3rd Dan was a red dobok and 4th was a white dobok with criss-cross black stripes covering the jacket. ....so stylish. lol

However, at my friend's dojo, they are allowed to wear black pants (I think only if they are black belt but I could be wrong) however, only his Kyoshi can wear all black. They all have white gis however.

This is not necessarily a mcdojo/mcdojang thing. I guess it's schools or organizations that simply have a look that they want. There's not necessarily anything wrong with it but for me, I never understood the point. Black or White doboks/gis...those are the only two colors that I would ever have if I had my own dojang.

Jhoon Goo Rhee has a gold dobok and I've seen purple and mixed colored ones too...so believe it or not there are people that really go over the top with it.

At my former dojang, I remember that we were issued white in the beginning and then once we became black belts we could wear a black dobok or a white dobok with a black trim. Then once you became 2nd Dan, you could wear the blue dobok. 3rd Dan was a red dobok and 4th was a white dobok with criss-cross black stripes covering the jacket. ....so stylish. lol

However, at my friend's dojo, they are allowed to wear black pants (I think only if they are black belt but I could be wrong) however, only his Kyoshi can wear all black. They all have white gis however.

This is not necessarily a mcdojo/mcdojang thing. I guess it's schools or organizations that simply have a look that they want. There's not necessarily anything wrong with it but for me, I never understood the point. Black or White doboks/gis...those are the only two colors that I would ever have if I had my own dojang.

Jhoon Goo Rhee has a gold dobok and I've seen purple and mixed colored ones too...so believe it or not there are people that really go over the top with it.

As far as I know, the color of the uniform doesn't really matter in regards to the 'quality' or 'meaning' of the martial arts style, it's just a preference by the school/styles. The traditional styles tend to stay with the traditional color (white) while other styles prefer not to. It doesn't really mean anything.

The color of the belts are the only thing that really matter to martial arts as they signify rank.

Colored gi = "We like to go to tournaments and show off how cool we look with ou bright uniforms we wear so everyone will notice us!!!"
That's the impression I get, anyway. If my opinion, as a very young and inexperienced traditional stylist who has a deep passion for martial arts and hopes to teach it someday, means anything.
Black gi...it depends on the style. If it's a VERY traditional style of Karate (where they speak Japanese in class and everything) it's fine. Any non-traditional Karate or TKD school, it's not exactly a bad thing, but it shows that they lack knowledge of or choose to ignore the traditional roots of their style.

It doesn't matter what the other styles are wearing, the important thing is that you do your best in your own training.

For the record, our founder the late Sijo Adriano Emperado ask his students to dye their Gi's black during the mid-1960's to pay respect to the Chinese contribution to Kajukenbo. The Chinese martial artists wear black uniforms. So we wear black Gi's.

Yes, there are some McDojos in our style, but they are rare. The majority of Kajukenbo schools are hardcore and extremely hardcore. Most new students drop out within a week or two.

I used to train in an MMA training center. We wear black Gi's. I noticed that the people who train in Brazilian Jujitsu wear Gi's of many different colors. Some wear white, or black, or blue, or red, or mauve or maybe another color that I don't remember. So one day I asked someone who trains in Brazilian Jujitsu what the different colors mean. He told me that they don't mean anything, in Brazilian Jujitsu, the student is allowed to choose the color of his Gi. Now, I know the answer for Brazilian Jujitsu. They are allowed to wear whatever color Gi they want. We don't have that choice, we have to wear a black Gi. And you probably have to wear a white Gi. And it's perfectly OK.

And Goju Ryu is a cool style. You probably didn't know that the nephew of Sensei Gogen Yamaguchi, Sensei Paul Yamaguchi of Hawaii originally studied Kenpo Karate from Sijo Adriano Emperado before he moved to Okinawa to study with his uncle.

In tea kwon do non black belts wear white gis to represent that their "book" (they explained it as the mind is a book) is still empty, as it gets filled you may get a colored gi as your "pages" are filled with the ink of knowledge.

In Jiu Jitsu you may wear what ever colored gi fits you personality.

I cannot vouch for any other martial art.

It's up to the dojo or the situation. Some dojo permit colored gi. Some dojo use colored gi to differentiate between students and instructors. If you do Judo or Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, you need a blue (or reversible) gi for competition. Sometimes people wear different colored gi for demonstrations. In American Kempo, practitioners wear black gi after... purple belt I think it is.

it's just a practice undertaken by that dojo, doesn't mean it's a mcdojo