Special Post: Proposition 8 says YES to discrimination

With a black American president newly elected we have heard a lot about breaking taboos.

However, on the same day that Obama was elected, Gay marriage was eliminated in the state of California.

Doesn't anyone feel there is something wrong about that?

A minority president is elected, and at the same time, his country suddenly regresses in terms of human rights by banning another minority from civil rights.

Proposition 8 was passed to change the Californian Constitution, that allowed same-sex marriage since 2000.

Gay rights have always been taboo, but it has been the same for black rights for centuries.

Wouldn't there be an global outrage if black people were taken away their right to vote?
Or if the right to woman being able to vote was abolished?

Gay rights are yet a rather new voice compared to other minorities, but it would make more sense to support discriminated minorities in that 'time of change' brought by the election of President Obama.

Proposition 8 is not only a disgraceful regression of the state on basic human rights, it also poses many questions about the security of change.

If gay marriage can be eliminated from one day to the next, buried under a pretence of taboo breaking (with the election of the first black American president), it shows how fragile are the small battles that have been won.

If no one hears about this, it means the basic human rights we take for granted could be taken away any second.

A place where fashion kills

There is a pair of Chanel wedges I would kill for. But I would not wear them at the risk of being killed.

In some countries of the Middle East women are killed for less than a fancy pair of heel shoes. Showing a bare ankle is sometimes enough.

I was shocked to read in a brilliant article by Rachel Cook that in Yemen women have to think twice before raising their veil to eat breakfast in a restaurant. Even though most restaurants have separate rooms for women diners.

The debate is a difficult one. A lot of Islamic women wear the veil out of choice. But it is difficult to choose when the weight of tradition is against you. Free will is a questionable concept: in Afghanistan, now the chadri is no longer required it is less frequently worn. When it is, it's often a matter of personal safety.

Is that free will?

The Qur'an stresses the importance of modesty. As far as I am aware, having a moral conscience isn't about a piece of cloth - however long or whatever the colour. It is about being comfortable and respecting yourself and others.

To me, fearing imprisonment because I have not lowered my head at the right moment; or worrying constantly whether my wrists are covered properly by fear of a beating is not respecting myself.

Fashion is not the most moral industry. But clothes have no conscience in themselves. They are a second skin and make us who we are.

Fashion should never kill.