At Christian Fashion Week, Modesty Is One Policy

[cbayer]

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/02/style/at-christian-fashion-week-modesty-is-their-policy.html?_r=0

By ALEXANDRA JACOBS
APRIL 1, 2015


JoJo Shaw (center), 34, of Tampa, Fla., bowed her head in a backstage prayer. Leading the prayer, Mayra Gomez, a founder of Christian Fashion Week, asked for everyone on the runway to be safe and for God to allow everyone in the audience to be open-minded about what Christian fashion is all about. Credit Melissa Lyttle for The New York Times

TAMPA, Fla. — As Tom Ford presented his fall 2015 collection in the modern Sodom of Los Angeles, and Marc Jacobs tended his “garden in hell” in Gotham-Gomorrah, around 300 Christians were gathering here for a fashion extravaganza of their own.

There were no buyers from Bergdorf Goodman, or celebrities moving in slow security phalanxes. But Jayson and Silva Emerian, a Presbyterian couple from Fresno, Calif., were among the spectators Feb. 20 at the Vault, a bank turned party space downtown. “I’m just here to support my wife,” said Mr. Emerian, a general contractor.

Mrs. Emerian was gathering material for her blog, On My Shoebox.

“She’s big on shoes,” Mr. Emerian explained.

more at link

[mindem]

1. What a creepy picture.

I really think our country has gone past the point of no return.

[cbayer]

2. I never even knew there was such a thing as christian fashion.

[TygrBright]

3. I think "Christian fashion" is to couture as "Christian rock" is to music. n/t

[cbayer]

4. Well said. It's all about the marketing.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

5. No sequins?

They are on a slippery slope.

Then there's this blog that flips the modesty for women argument on its head, written by a heterosexual woman. Men in suits are only showing their hands and heads:

http://thesaltcollective.org/modesty-whensuitsbecomestumblingblock/

Every time I pass a man in a well-tailored suit, I try to keep my eyes averted to avoid the evil, lustful thoughts that will surely creep into my head. Sometimes I’m successful. Other times…I’m in an office building and I find my senses assaulted by a sea of men in strutting around in well-tailored suits, smelling of cologne and after-shave and…….

[gazes out the window]

Don’t these men have any self respect? Do they even understand how their clothing affects me? I wonder what is going through men’s heads when they decide to dress this way. All I know is that when a man wears a nice suit with pants that are juuuust tight enough, I will notice

Therefore I am issuing a plea to my brothers in Christ for an understanding of where I’m coming from. When you choose to exist in public looking well-groomed and sharp, you are basically extending an invitation for me to lust after you.

Listen, as a woman I’m an emotional creature. I want to feel protected and safe, and nothing screams “I am a MAN and I will protect you” like a suit and tie. I can’t help it, that’s just how I’m wired.** It’s science. LOOK IT UP.

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As a heterosexual woman myself, I think she is on to something. You can't stop people lusting after you if you cover yourself. People are going to project their desires on to the person they are lusting after. It has to do with the person who is looking's imagination, not the object person. This is what telling women to cover up for inciting men's lust gets wrong. It demeans men for women to have to cover up because it implies that men can't control themselves for raping women, and thus the woman is the bad person for having those secondary sexual characteristics. It's called "sexual dimorphism" in that men and women are, generally, built differently.

[cbayer]

6. I see what you are saying up to a point.

Women, particularly young women and even girls, are sold the idea of being sexual objects. The marketing is pervasive and pretty much constant.

There is a difference between a a hijab and a super short skirt and tube top on a 14 year old.

I understand the distinction this writer is drawing and I think that some of the modesty rules imposed by certain religious groups on women are sexist to their core. But I also think there is sexism on the other extreme.

It's not that men can't control themselves, it's that women are trained to sexually arouse them.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

7. Women are TRAINED to sexually arouse them?

What do you mean by "trained"?


Are you saying that women are wearing skimpy outfits to attract male attention? I don't know how many girls and women think about how much skin they are exposing. Maybe they are sold the idea of being sexual objects, that they are nothing if they don't have a boyfriend, and that their value is solely in how attractive they are to men.
They may have been told that they are only valuable for their looks, and do not have any self-worth relating to their personality, skills or intelligence. Or they may be completely oblivious to their attractiveness to men.


Different people have different standards as to modesty. One woman may wear a low-cut blouse to show off her breasts. Another one may be uncomfortable with that. One woman may be uncomfortable with short dresses, and wear longer dresses. That's her choice. If a woman lives in a hot and humid climate, wearing fewer clothes is a valid choice for comfort. That choice should not be penalizing a woman by slut-shaming her.


In any event, a woman can be minding her own business, not paying attention to a man, and he can get sexually aroused by looking at a woman. I was trying to make the point that she is NOT responsible for the man's arousal.
In the Victorian Era, men were excited by seeing a clothed ankle, or hearing petticoats rustle. Women were quite covered up then and wore ankle-length or floor-length dresses. People were not dealing with their sexuality, and repressed people tended to get into kinky sex and prostitution.


Women are made the way they are by sexual dimorphism which is a biological concept. It's a biological response if you are a heterosexual to respond to the physical features of some members of the opposite sex. However, that does not mean that you have to act on those desires.


I think that men blaming women for the man's lusting after them is displacing the blame. The men have a duty in civilized society to not act upon that lust. It is not the woman's fault that she is made the way she is. It's about sexual dimorphism and hormones. The men should be able to say "I'm aroused but as a civilized member of society I am not going to rape or assault a woman that is attractive to me that is not interested in me."



Look up Sarah Silverman's Rape Prevention Tips, which are addressed to men, not to women. A shitstorm erupted on Twitter over these because they were directed at the perpetrator and not the victim. Most men are not rapists, but she did make a good point about blaming the victim, and standard rape prevention advice saying "don't dress provocatively because you're asking for it" and that kind of nonsense. Females of all ages get raped, and little girls are accused of being sexually provocative. If you're underage you can't consent to sex anyway.

1. don't put drugs in women's drinks.
2. when you see a woman walking by herself, don't rape her.
3. if you pull over to help a woman whose car has broken down, remember not to rape her.
etc.

[cbayer]

8. Trained by advertising, television, movies, magazines and tremendous peer pressure.

I'm not blaming men, I'm blaming american culture. It's not about slut shaming, it's abut recognizing the kinds of pressure that are put on girls.

Of course men are responsible for their behavior, no matter how someone dresses or behaves.

People should be able to dress anyway they wish, but I would love to see a reduction of sexualization of girls and young women.