Fashion has changed over the decades, but one thing has been consistent – women’s clothes are designed to accentuate “womanly” features.
While some definitely do so more than others, it has long been a hot debate whether women should dress, what some would deem, provocatively in front of men.
Becoming a mother of males gives the argument a whole new perspective, and one mom can’t be silent about it anymore.
The Daily Wire reported:
“Last Monday, a Catholic mother of four sons wrote a letter to The Observer, a student-run, daily print and online newspaper serving Notre Dame University, Saint Mary’s and Holy Cross, asking for women to consider not wearing leggings because they cling to the body and leave little to the imagination.”
Is she wrong? Technically no, regardless of where you stand on the issue.
Joseph Shivers sent a ripple effect throughout the fashion industry when he invented Lycra, otherwise known as Spandex, in 1958.
Today you can see women of all ages and nationalities wearing the skin tight garment in a variety of ways everywhere you look.
If no other piece of clothing goes over top the leggings, you can see every curve and bump on the bottom half of a woman.
Males are designed to be attracted to females. Exposing alluring parts of a woman in front of males has a high probability of eliciting a sexual response.
A study by the National Institute of Health has empirically proven that men are more susceptible to “alluring” sexual stimuli than women are.
However, despite the scientific evidence, many people are still outraged at the mother’s request.
WBST reported on the response to students and other “activists” around campus after the letter was released:
“Around 1,300 students are participating [in] “The Leggings Protest” on Notre Dame’s campus today. … The protest has two main objectives: for women and men to wear leggings in protest and to encourage conversations about female equality.”
First off, men in leggings is not even a thing, and this action is an obnoxious effort to make a statement, where they have no right to make one. The protest is for female equality.
Second, they are protesting a request – not a piece of legislation, not a new school policy, not even a suggestion of one!
When PhD student Valeria Mora brought up the letter in one of her classes to let them know it is okay to bring up issues like this, she got “a huge gasp”, according to the Daily Wire.
A mother who cares for the hearts and minds of her sons should be able to bring up legitimate concerns that affect their future relationships.
A reporter for the Chicago Tribune joined in the outrage saying:
“Let’s think about the sons, rather than their mothers, for a moment. … I wonder about what kind of pressure these four sons feel to “ignore” the young women around them. How do they handle swimming pools? Beaches? The checkout line at Target when Women’s Health magazine is on display?”
That is a great point, but for reasons on the other end of the argument.
Should society accept provocative clothing just because a lot of women are doing it?
It would be nice if the checkout lines, beaches, and women all around weren’t showing more skin than a super bowl Sunday.
The concerned Catholic mother began her letter by writing that she is not trying “to insult anyone or infringe upon anyone’s rights.”
Adding, “I’m just a Catholic mother of four sons with a problem that only girls can solve: leggings.”
Movies, television, magazines, and the fashion industry has made women believe that they are being powerful by exposing their most intimate areas, but in the end, men have exactly what they wanted.
The Catholic mother shares impactful insight by saying “the human body is a beautiful thing. But we don’t go around naked because we respect ourselves — we want to be seen as a person, not a body.”
In closing, the letter states:
“You have every right to wear them. But you have every right to choose not to. Thanks for listening to the lecture. Catholic moms are good at those!”
Wearing clothes that are suggestive or revealing is a woman’s choice, and if a man acts against the consent of a woman the woman is not guilty for this, but we do have the option to wear clothing that covers a majority of skin.
It is more empowering to go against the status quo, by being modest in dress, showing that women can be beautiful without showing off what is underneath.
Please let us know in the comments section what you think about the mother’s letter.