Concerned Women for America - Fighting Back: Teens Demand Modest Clothing

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Fighting Back: Teens Demand Modest Clothing 1/9/2003
By Martha Kleder

Fight back against Britneyware

Editor's Note: The following is the debut article in a continuous "Fighting Back" series about people who are "fighting back" against cultural forces that degrade the family and society. The citizens and groups featured may not always win their battles but they teach and inspire the rest of us through their determination and zeal in fighting for the truth. We hope this feature will encourage others to "fight back" and show them how to do so most effectively.

Customers Fight Back
Retailers call it "fast fashion," schools and parents call it a back-to-school nightmare, and 1,500 teens in Mesa, Arizona have had enough and are fighting back.

Last fall, Amanda Smith, an 18-year-old senior at Mountain View High School in Mesa, collected 1,500 signatures from fellow classmates fed up with fashions that bare midriffs, cleavage, backs and shoulders.

Smith began the effort after conversations with other girls in her church who were also upset at the lack of modest clothing options.

"All we can find are older women's clothing," she told The Arizona Republic.

Classmate Brittney Phelps, 17, agreed, saying, "It's disturbing to see girls sitting with their underwear showing and all their fat hanging out."

Smith's effort started with the members of her ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), and then the effort took off once she brought the petition to her high school, where non-Mormons were eager to sign on.

Smith and her friends collected the 1,500 signatures in about three weeks.

"Our point is not to censor anyone," Delynn Bodine, one of the girl's LDS advisors told The Republic. "We want options to be able to buy clothing that represents the standards of these girl's homes."

On October 30, Smith, Phelps and several others delivered the petition to the Phoenix office of Dillard's department store. The petition urged the retailer to start selling teen clothing "that covers the midriff, bust, shoulder, back, legs to the knee, and any clothing that shows respect for the body."

Dillard's was targeted by the teens because it's a large retailer and formerly offered conservative, affordable clothes.

The retailer has apparently listened. Ken Burnett, chairman and CEO of Dillard's Phoenix division, said the chain immediately began carrying some more modest gowns for the homecoming season.

Role Models for Teens
"It's hard to find a middle of the road for teen girls," Kathy Gowler, assistant to the editor of Focus on the Family's Christian youth magazine Brio, told C&F Report. Gowler applauded the Arizona teen's efforts and said Brio regularly hears from readers exasperated with the lack of modest fashions.

"We at Brio cover the topic of fashion very carefully," she said, noting that individual family and church standards of their readers vary. But Gowler adds that many female Contemporary Christian artists are now talking about fashion.

The most notable is the all-female vocal group Point of Grace, which launched the "Girls of Grace" book and conference tour last fall.

The Friday-night-and-Saturday events tackle teen issues from relationships to a girl's walk with the Lord. Included in the conference is a fashion show, demonstrating how girls can dress in a Godly and feminine way, and still be stylish.

"The main objective of the event is to inspire young girls to lead pure, Godly lives modeled after Christ, in spite of other negative and worldly values that are accepted as normal for today's teenage girls," reads the Point of Grace Web site. "We want to show you how it is possible to be "cool" and still be a Christian witness in your schools and homes."

The project is the vision of band members Heather Payne, Denise Jones, Shelley Breen and Terry Jones.

"After ten years of touring and hearing stories, struggles, fears and questions from their audience and fans, Point of Grace prepares to give answers and offer guidance to young girls (ages 13-18) to challenge them to a life of Christian womanhood," reads an April 24, 2002, press release. "The goal of each conference is for the girls to walk away with a refreshed heart, a renewed self-confidence and a better understanding of their daily walk with Christ."

A Fashion Juggernaut
The sleazy clothing trend was set by MTV and pop idols like Britney Spears. "Fast fashion" came into style just as the retail industry was beginning to devote more floor space to teen fashions. Retail analysts say department stores like Dillard's began offering the racy fashions to keep from losing their younger customers to trendy teen shops.

But department stores can pay a heavy price if they too closely mimic the specialty stores. Anne Brouwer, a partner with Chicago retailing consultant McMillan-Doolittle, told The Arizona Republic that too much focus on "fast fashion" can drive away a department store's core customer-base - the parents.

Other retailers are feeling the pinch. Back-to-school sales were slumping across the nation. Scottsdale, Arizona, merchandise analyst Mike Adams thinks that may have been due as much to the flashy clothes as the economy.

"Some of this stuff, truthfully, I can understand why a parent could find it unacceptable," he told the Republic. "Somebody's got to listen to the consumer."

From Flash to Trash
Parents and teens wanting a return to more modest fashion may have a new ally in their effort: grunge, the anti-fashion.

According to a December 11 Wall Street Journal article, this year the Britney Spears bare-bodied pout is out and the early 1990s unkempt, androgynous, slouch-and-scowl grunge look is back.

The newest icons of fashion are 17-year-old rock guitarist Avril Lavigne and Ozzy's daughter Kelly Osbourne, reviving the look made popular by Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain. The entire Seattle grunge scene is being revived with a new album from Pearl Jam, a greatest hits album from Nirvana, and the new band Audioslave, led by Soundgarden's old front man, Chris Cornell.

The look is messy, purposefully unkempt. And this is bad news for retailers because kids into grunge are more likely to shop at thrift stores and Army surplus outlets than trendy stores.

While grunge was never popular with parents, retailers have even more reason to fear the trend. In 1992, the year that grunge took hold of the average American teenager, teen spending on clothing entered a four-year slump. As teens headed to second-hand stores for ragged jeans, flannel shirts, and beat-up sneakers, many trendy retailers headed to bankruptcy court while others, like The Limited Inc., took staggering economic hits.

The economy rebounded in 1996, the world was introduced to Britney Spears, and retailers expanded their teen lines in keeping with MTV's fashion beat. Today, the average store devotes more than twice the floor space to teen fashions than it did in 1995.

So, while anti-fashion teens are bad news for retailers, the trend opens the door for parents and concerned teens to pressure department stores for more modest clothing.

And just in time, too. Despite the grunge redux, the "fast fashion" trend is far from over. Fashion trade magazines are promoting this spring's hot look: micro-mini skirts. Shopped as an adult fashion trend, the style surely will seep into the junior's department.

Safe Paths Through the Fashion Minefield
Andrea Stephens, beauty editor for Focus on the Family's Brio magazine, has written extensively on the subject and is now conducting break-out sessions on fashion at Focus' Life on the Edge tours.

"If a top is cut too low in the front, wear a tube top or tank top underneath," wrote Stephens in Brio. The tank top provides the strappy shoulder look without revealing undergarments, tucks into lower-waist jeans, and provides adequate coverage under sheer and low-cut blouses.

That option is one that is getting a lot of mileage with Christian female artists like Point of Grace and Out of Eden, which are always looking to be fashionable without sacrificing Godliness.

Stephens suggests keeping hair, shoes and accessories like purses and jackets in step with the fashion and looking for modest clothes in the season's 'hot' colors.

Apart from that, Stephens also suggests doing something totally different. If super-short skirts are the rage, opt for wearing a really long one. Rather than struggling with low-cut jeans, wear bib overalls instead.

Another tip Stephens offers is for girls to shop with a like-minded friend, someone who is also committed to dressing modestly to honor God.

"Real style comes from within," writes Stephens. "Build your self-esteem (and your wardrobe) on God's opinion. And remember, the best-dressed girl is always wearing a smile."

You can find more tips from Stephens in Brio either by subscription or online at www.briomag.com. Stephens has also written several books for Servant Publications' Vine Books, including Happy Thoughts for Bad Hair Days, God Thinks You're Positively Awesome!, and I'm Glad You Know Where We're Going, Lord.

Her newest title, Stuff A Girl's Gotta Know: Little Hints for Big Things in a Teen's Life, is scheduled for release this month on Vine Books.