"Women from Texas polygamous sect launch clothing line"
"Women from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who were called upon to make clothes en masse for the children taken into state custody, have now turned their skills to commerce and launched an online shop."
This statement to me shows one aspect of feminism -
"The austere dresses with long-sleeves and high collars, loose-fitting pants, long-johns and modest blouses worn by members of the sect are reminiscent of 19th century American pioneers and highlighted the sect's isolation.
But with the children returned to their legal guardians following a court ruling in May, the sect's members are turning their hand to providing their distinctive clothes to the general public -- and the demand appears strong."
Even though polygamy is illegal, these women showed the world that they care for their children by making clothes for them, display history through their design, and most importantly show the world that their culture is very special to them and its their choice.
The demand statement shows that there are people that are supporting them.
I just thought this was an interesting perspective of looking at things and does not portray anyone's beliefs.
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I used to work at a guest house in Ocean City, NJ as a chambermaid. It was a guest house owned by Christians and frequently us girls that worked there would come in contact with the owners friends. I remember one summer when a family from upstate New York came; there were two daughters in the family and both were about the ages of the chambermaids (high school). When we went to the beach with the girls they wore bathing suits that were like wet suits with skirts attached. To us these outfits were ridiculous, but these girls were so excited that they had actually found these suits.
I thought about this situation when reading the post. It's interesting that what might seem so unnatural actually gives girls, like the ones I met, freedom. The polygamists would be smart to sell their clothes because they actually do have a market.
hope you can get to this link to see it, if not, google "burkini swimwear." http://www.visavismag.com/content/view/457/82/
i heard about this new line of clothing on NPR. Pretty interesting, and my reaction was very mixed.
It this is true, I applaud these women for turning a painful experience into one with a positive outcome. At this time I don't think I will be wearing any of their fashions.
Having moved here from Seattle where wearing shorts with Birkenstocks (many with white socks)and carrying an umbrella most days was the fashion norm to a culture that embraces Carhartt and work boots, I found myself adapting to the dress norms of SC. There are some I adopted while others I refuse to follow.
We are fortunate to live in a society where we have the freedom to choose what we wear and when we wear it most of the time. In many societies the women don't have this choice - it is either directed by their religion or country laws.
I hope the women in this article find a market for their clothing line but ultimately I hope we learn from this experience.
I too am interested in the choices women make and how they use those choices to define freedom. A few years back I heard an interesting interview on NPR with two Muslim sisters who made different choices about wearing the veil. One said wearing it gave her more freedom--a concept I'd never considered before.
I'm with Kim on the "very mixed reaction" to the Burkini. On the one hand, I appreciate what the line might do for allowing some women to participate in activities that were previously unavailable. On the other hand I'm deeply concerned by anyone who feels it's OK to "dress" (sorry for the pun) an oppressive social regime up in the trimmings of high fashion. It's one thing when it's an option, but when women are required to wear this stuff under penalty of law, that's horrible, and anyone contributing to making that look OK is complicit. And anyone sitting comfortably in Sydney Australian and making money off of the women subject to this law should, perhaps, think again.
I also commend these women for turning a painful situation for themselves and their community into a more positive situation. Its nice to see that a negative has been turned into a positive for some of these women.
I returned yesterday from a two week mission trip to Belize, where we worked in a village next to a Menonnite community. Some of the women in the Menonnite community had started to do the same thing, make and sell their clothes to other people in the country. One woman I spoke to said that she felt like she had more freedom because the majority of people in their community were not allowed to interact with other Belizeans. I think it is a good thing that both the Menonnite women, as well as these women from the polygamous sect are getting out into the "real world".
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