The J Dub Culture of Skirt-Wearing (page 5)

still thinking

In my 10 years of on off study and kingdom hall ritual... I NEVER wore a skirt....HA! up their gungas!....man that must have irritated them, but they just grinned and bared it...(they did try to give me some clothes but I declined)

Found Sheep

no skirt you must have killed them... good for you!

still thinking

I think it did...ha ha. I had a thing about it because I couldn't see any reason for the skirt wearing...and they couldn't show me anything biblical about it I figured it was a stupid idea. The subject did rear its ugly head every so often...but I just said..."whatever"

what a load of........

ambersun

I got told off on my very first visit to the KH at the age of 14 for wearing my best, smart trousers. Actually, our study conductor took my dad aside and told him in no uncertain terms to make sure I wore a skirt to the next meeting. I was quite shocked to say the least.

I had been attending bible meetings at another church with some friends for several months before this, and we all wore whatever we felt comfortable in, which, considering we were teenagers, was usually slacks and tee shirts. At this church it was our attendance which was considered important, not what we were wearing, and we were all treated equally. Girls were also encouraged to get up and talk to the group with their thoughts and opinions the same as the boys. This was another shock at the Ministry School when I learned we had to write silly plays where we sat on the stage facing another female as we were not allowed to speak directly to men from the platform.

I got pneumonia from pioneering in freezing conditions wearing the compulsory skirt and thin tights which, even though I put several pairs on top of each other, did nothing to protect me from the biting winter winds. I'm sure householders were more concerned about my frozen appearance than the fact I was wearing a modest, gender appropriate skirt. Oh happy days

I have mentioned to my JW family how off putting it is for people to see groups of witnesses out in FS looking dressed for a funeral, when they would probably do much better if they dressed casually and looked less threatening.

sizemik

It does appear they just want women to know their place,such as,with the head covering.

That's my take too . . . it has little to do with modesty or gender ID . . . it's simply another an instrument for the subjugation of women . . . trousers are "men only" . . . and don't you forget it!

(A talk by a an Iraqi D.O. with a good sense of humour comes to mind on this subject. Others from Auckland N.Z. may recall him)

I recall him from CHCH NZ too bigmouth . . . nice guy actually . . . I believe he ditched the JW's not long after leaving the country?

still thinking . . .

bigmouth

Thanks sizemik. I remember the guy was quite short and as the bro on mikes was adjusting his mike he was pogoing up and down as it moved. We all thought an Iraqi JW was pretty cool/weird. I'd laugh if he became a Muslim!

BTW the nick change is brilliant! Still shakin' back home I see.

Morbidzbaby

LMAO I agree with jeckle, Found Sheep . Rawr . And that's coming from a straight woman LMAO!

Now I'm whistling "Walk Like and Egyptian"...

@ White Dove: Your style sounds similar to mine... I'm kind of goth/rock chicky. Dark nail polish, I wear a lot of black clothing (mostly shirts) and dark purple (my color). My hair...well, I've let it grow and colored it lighter, but everyone tells me they liked my asymmetrical chopped look with my black hair. I liked it too, but (no offense here!) I kept getting mistaken for a lesbian because of the short spikes in back. At the time, I was looking for a boyfriend and, well...that wasn't helping lol. Now that I have one, I'm thinking I might go back to that and instead of getting it spiked in the back, I might get it stacked and leave the front asymmetrical.

Chariklo

The dress rule is ridiculous.

For a start, different cultures have different rules on modesty. So, in Britain, it is perfectly normal for Britons with an Asian background to wear trousers as part of their normal traditional...modest...wear. Dresses and skirts would not be thought of as modest.

I was one of those "interested ones" who went to my first 3 meetings in trousers and then changed. Normally, I wear trousers all the time. When I asked why no sisters wore them, I was told that the rule is there for modesty. I was outraged! My trousers were extremely modest. But I made the adjustment. I wanted to fit in. There is another interested one in the same KH who has been studying for 3 years and who still wears trousers of a very modest nature. However, I was very committed, whereas she has managed to keep more of a distance.

When I went to my first Convention, I was again appalled to find that everyone "dressed up" as they did. It was like being at a wedding! The women were so competitive, too! They viewed the Convention as very important spiritually but they were vying with each other as to who was the smartest. Not my scene at all.

From my point of view, Jehovah, God, valued who we are inside, the state of our heart, our thoughts and motives. Why would a spiritual being care about skirts or trousers?

I agree with sizemik.

It's simply another an instrument for the subjugation of women

What Now?

I'm not sure where I heard this discussed, but I remember reading once that a GB member (Bro. Jaracz I think?) insisted that in all pictures of sisters in the literature, they had to be wearing skirts. Does this ring a bell?

This reminds me of something funny ... in the winter we sisters wear thicker tights right? Well twice now, I've been getting ready, for service and for the meeting. I put my tights on, get preoccupied with something else, and then put on my winter coat. It wasn't until I was already out in service the first time, and about to take my coat off at the kingdom hall the second time, that I realized that I completely forgot to put a skirt on.

Kudra

Ha -no one mentioned The Hillary Pantsuit??

It is funny, whenever I asked about the no pants rule, I was told it was because brothers and sisters had to dress according to what the customs of the land were regarding "business attire". Uuuuhhh... so pants are considered professional for a woman running for the position of PRESIDENT OF THE FUCKING UNITED STATES but are not "business" enough for a lowly dub attending a Tuesday night bookstudy? Seriously, WTF.

I was at a scientific conference this past December in SF and several people complimented me on how nice and professional I looked. What was I wearing that I stood out even at a science conference?? A grey wool suit. With trousers, not a skirt. Sheesh.

Go Hillary!!

The J Dub Culture of Skirt-Wearing

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