Shaved Women

I photocopied a "first person" essay from a 2005 Teen Vogue for my course today, written by a French Muslim schoolgirl who shaved her head rather than go without her headscarf (in 2004, France banned the Islamic headscarf and other "overt" religious symbols from state schools). I hope the essay (tragically titled "French Dressing") will inspire my students to consider challenges to the limits of tolerance discourse which, as political theorist Wendy Brown argues, is too often also a civilizational discourse. Or at least push them to rethink their "commonsensical" assumptions about hijab (always oppressive) and the women who wear it (always oppressed). More on this later from next week's lecture.

But it's not unusual to find interesting reporting in women's fashion magazines (though most follows certain generic conventions, which is a fascinating topic in itself). For instance, the most recent issue of Marie Claire features the first interview with Lynndie England from federal prison.

That said, this is a test post made past my bedtime.