The politics of pantsuits. This teen grapples with the unwritten dress code for women in leadership

The politics of pantsuits. This teen grapples with the unwritten dress code for women in leadership - KUOW News and Information

Posted: 07 Jul 2020 01:34 PM PDT

For the first time in United States history, the country saw six women run for president in the 2020 election. Unlike the male candidates, the women were asked about their fashion choices.

What women candidates wear plays a huge role in whether people think they're electable, and that judgment of women's clothing choices starts pretty young.

I met with high school student Sancha Gonzalez, who told me how she decided what she would wear for Mock Trial, a club where students imitate an actual trial as attorneys and witnesses.

"I would always straighten my hair," Gonzalez said. "Then I would do my makeup. It couldn't be too intense, but we still had to look professional by covering up our acne and dark circles. Lastly, I would put on my heels and finally walk out the door for the day."

As president of Mock Trial, Gonzalez knows exactly what the jury is looking for. Follow their rubric, and you won't lose points.

She remembers their first scrimmage, when the jury told them why they lost: "All of the women attorneys were told that they should've worn pants instead of skirts because skirts made them look more feminine, and they would be more respected if they wore pants."

Pants might be the expectation for Mock Trial, but Hillary Clinton got criticized for her pantsuits. So what is the official rule book?

Well, there is none. But Gonzalez knows that either way, expectations involve dressing the part.

"What you wear sends a message to people about who you are," said Jessica Bennet, a New York Times editor covering gender and culture. She explained that women are often scrutinized more critically than their male counterparts.

"This ranges from their records and how much experience they have," Bennet said, "to whether the public perceives them to be electible, to the way that they say things, literally their tone of voice or the pitch of their tone, to what they wear. And part of this has to do [with] the fact that we are not used to seeing women in the highest positions of power."

For now, women still have to conform to an unwritten dress code.

Ambika Singh wants to help them. She has a business called Armoire, an online clothing retail store with a variety of styles to choose from.

caption: A customer looks at jackets at Armoire.

"Clothing is how we present ourselves," Singh said, "part of the armor, the first impression. In the modern era, our armor is clothing, so I focused on clothing because of its relationship with how we present externally and how we feel internally."

But the women running for president in 2020 didn't get to pick their outfits based on personal style or what made them feel good. Instead, they had to think carefully about what each outfit telegraphed to voters.

We won't have a woman president this year. But the democratic nominee Joe Biden promised to nominate a woman as his running mate.

How will voters react to what she wears?

I went back to high school student Sancha Gonzalez. Her dream is to go into politics and possibly work in the White House. She said her gender and what she wears is always in the back of her mind: "I feel like if you don't dress in a feminine way, you're seen as too powerful, too manly, or something that you're not. Women that are wearing pantsuits or powerful outfits or strong colors, they're always seen as abrasive and aggressive instead of, 'Oh, they're wearing the color red just because they like it,' like how a man would be seen."

Gonzalez would like to think we don't get judged by what we wear. But she also realizes both men and women have internalized the messages about the way professional women should look.

And given her ambitions for the future, Gonzalez will continue to play by the rules until those rules change.

This story was created in KUOW's RadioActive Advanced Producers Workshop for teenagers, with production support from Sonya Harris. Edited by Marcie Sillman.

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Support for KUOW's RadioActive comes from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Discovery Center.

Understanding the dress codes of Orthodox Jewish women and their diverse interpretations - CNN

Posted: 17 Jun 2020 04:34 AM PDT

Written by Hannah Tindle, CNN

Based on the true story of Deborah Feldman, a Jewish woman who left the Satmar community in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in search of a new life, the hit Netflix series "Unorthodox" has brought Hasidic culture -- and its female dress codes -- into mainstream focus. One of the most talked about aspects of the show is the clothing, which shapes lead character Esty's (played by Shira Haas) story from beginning to end.

The show's costume designer Justine Seymour spent hours on meticulous research, including a week-long stint within the Satmar community in New York. "I consider one of the biggest gifts of my job to be that it is very creative, but also very educational," she said during a phone interview.

"You do have to be sensitive, respectful, and informed when you are observing a very closed community," said Seymour, who is not Jewish. She said she discovered that the women she met during her research embraced designer brands for shoes, headscarves and handbags. "Kate Spade, Chanel, Ferragamo and Hermes were the stand-out designers," she said, that "add a bit of glamour to the conservative dress code."

Whether scouring second-hand stores for silk scarves (she said she purchased over 100 for the show) or building faux-fur shtreimels (hats worn by married Hasidic men usually made from mink) from scratch, Seymour said she worked hard to ensure that each costume would adhere to Orthodox Jewish laws, but also celebrate the nuances of individual style.

Esty on her wedding day in "Unorthodox." Credit: Anika Molnar/Netflix

Orthodox dressing can often be perceived by outsiders as overly restrictive, and as leaving little room for individual freedom and self-expression. Feldman and the fictional character of Esty both struggled with the pressures put on them by their communities, which extended to their appearance, but all three of the Jewish women interviewed for this article felt that there's more freedom to explore one's personal style than people might assume -- particularly within less conservative households or branches -- and many devout women do play with fashion to reflect their personal taste, while staying within the religious dress codes they have chosen to follow.

Orthodox Judaism encompasses many traditions and customs, with the Hasidim of Williamsburg being just one ultra-observant group. And while women living in this particular community tend to subscribe to more stringent rules for getting dressed, modern Orthodox followers, for example, choose to interpret some of the core principles differently.

Specific style codes vary from community to community, with clothing often dictated by practicality or religious occasion -- Shabbat, Yom Tov (meaning holiday), weddings and bar mitzvahs -- as much as personal taste. But no matter where you are or whatever the occasion, in the Orthodox Jewish world, what to wear is governed by the concept of modesty, called tzniut in Hebrew and tznius in Yiddish. From Tel Aviv to Massachusetts, it is with tznius in mind that clothing is chosen.

Tamara Fulton, a fashion stylist and lifestyle editor, who is married to an Orthodox rabbi and lives in London, explained: "There are lots of different Jewish communities all over the world with much diversity yet the underlying principles they share are the same. Tznius is the word in Judaism that is slightly mistranslated to mean simply 'modesty,' but it's not just about modest dressing. Tznius applies to both men and women, and is based upon the concept of humility. It's really about how you are in the world, and how you carry yourself in a reserved but dignified manner," said Fulton.

This usually means the following for Orthodox women: trousers are not worn, and skirts and dresses must fall below the knee, including when sitting; arms are covered to the elbow, and necklines are high-cut. Often clothing is altered -- with slits in skirts sewn up and false necklines added. Layering is also often used to create final looks.

The scene from "Unorthodox" when Esty's hair is shaved. Credit: Anika Molnar/Netflix

Once married, covering your hair is another one of the key principles of tznius. Not all women will shave their real hair, as Esty does during one of the most memorable scenes of "Unorthodox" (her hair is in fact shaved for her). But many observant women will either wear a scarf or a sheitel, the Yiddish word for wig.

A Jewish teacher who taught in Israel in a girls' seminary and also lived in the Haredi, or ultra-Orthodox, community in Manchester in the north of England agreed to be interviewed for this article, but asked not to be named for reasons of modesty.

She wears a sheitel herself and explained that they can often be used as an accessory or as a way to change up your look. Over the phone she said: "One (woman) I know has a selection of all different color sheitels in different styles. Because she says: 'I'm covering my head and I'm thinking of a sheitel as a hat. So if I want to be blonde one day and brunette another, why shouldn't I be?'"

The style of sheitel is also dependent on the community. For example, some Hasidic women wear shorter wigs with a hat on top, so there is no doubt they are wearing a head covering. Sheitels are made from both human and synthetic hair. When she was living in Manchester, the teacher always preferred to wear her wig made from real hair for special occasions. "I would have real hair for Shabbat, and then synthetic for every day," she said.

Wearing gifted jewelry on Shabbat or special occasions is also common. "It is believed that married women should be given beautiful jewelry," said the teacher. "It might be modest, but it would be of high quality."

Seymour noted that jewelry was an important component when assembling the costumes for "Unorthodox." She remembered having to dress around 60 women for Esty and her husband Yanky's wedding scene, all in replica diamonds and pearls. Later in this scene, the groom presents his new bride with a pair of latticed diamond earrings. "They are very close to the earrings Deborah Feldman was given in reality," she said.

When is comes to color, like with other cultures and religions, different colors take on different meanings, but black isn't the only color worn by Hasidic women. "When I lived in Israel, we hardly wore black," said the teacher. "It was very bright colors. But not red -- never red! As this color is not seen as modest. (In Hasidic communities) women will tend to wear navy, bottle green, browns and gray."

"For all women, the clothes are an expression of yourself. The idea is to look smart, but not to draw too much attention to yourself," she explained.

A look from the Erdem show at London Fashion Week in February. Credit: Stuart Wilson/BFC/Getty Images

Orthodox women choose to buy clothing from a variety of different places -- from Jewish-owned clothing stores within their community to other non-Jewish shops or shopping centers. For Fulton, there are several go-to stores that often sell pieces that work for her. "I prefer to wear clothes that are designed to be worn as they are, rather than layering or altering for modesty," she said. "H&M and Zara are great for this."

She also noted that many high fashion designers have been producing collections that offer options for women who choose to dress modestly. "It's really interesting to see designers like Valentino, Erdem, and McQueen, for example, produce styles that just happen to be appropriate for women who might want to dress in a more modest way. I'm a big fan of the whole 1970s revival, too, with Laura Ashley-inspired designs and brands such as The Vampire's Wife."

Another brand that has become popular with both observant and secular women alike is Batsheva. The 2018 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winning brand is known for its ruffled, prairie-style dresses. Established by native New Yorker Batsheva Hay, the foundations of her namesake label are centered around her own personal history and culture.

Her husband, photographer Alexei Hay, began following Orthodox practices just before they started dating. At their wedding, Batsheva -- who grew up in a secular Jewish family and who is not ultra-observant of Jewish dress codes -- said men and women were separated, which is traditional, and Hay wore her mother's wedding dress, made from Mexican lace and suitable for tznius.

Alexei and Batsheva Hay on their wedding day. Credit: Courtesy of Batsheva Hay

With no formal fashion design training, Hay -- a former lawyer -- first started making clothes for herself while at home raising young children. She launched her brand in 2016.

"When I was starting Batsheva, I was finding that so many of the references that I was interested in were retro or old-fashioned," she said over the phone. "Also in my (neighborhood), and in Brooklyn which is a quick subway ride away from me, I was seeing Orthodox women who dressed similarly to this." Hay, who said she is compelled by working within specific, pre-laid rules, but interpreting them anew. In this way, she has developed a style that is modest but also distinctive and fun.

A look from the Batsheva Spring-Summer 2020 collection presented at New York Fashion Week in September 2019 Credit: Victor Virgile/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images

"The goal for Orthodox Jews is not an abandonment of beauty," she said. "It's supposed to be working within that to still look beautiful."

Seymour echoed this sentiment: "With the costumes in 'Unorthodox,' I wanted to honor women all over the world who want to look beautiful without breaking the codes of modesty." She said she was struck by the pride many of the woman in the Satmar community took in dressing well. "If the show can inspire a little bit more glamour and beauty, and pride in the way (all women) dress, I would be overjoyed."