INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Nancy Pelosi was dressed to take on leadership role in boldest, brightest, I-am-here shade of pink.At start of 116th Congress, fashion was
not merely a footnote, it was a rallying cry, a defiant gesture, a point of cultural pride - a glorious, theatrical declaration of self
It was white suits and pink dresses, Native American artistry, a Palestinian thobe, a kente cloth stole, a hijab and a skintight pencil
skirt with a fur stole.The main news story from Capitol Hill was, of course, phoenix-like rise of Rep
But even before she was sworn in as Speaker of House, it was impossible to miss her as television cameras swooped high and low over sea of
dark suits on House floor
Alas, despite an influx of women - a record 102 in House - men still dominate, and those men continue to favor a palette of navy, charcoal
Pelosi's bright fuchsia dress was like plumage of a brazen bird, one with audacity not just to fly with flock but to lead it.It was
aesthetic opposite of what she'd worn only day before, when she went striding through halls of Capitol in a discreet suit color of cement
This was an entirely different ensemble for a momentous day - one not just for cameras, but for history books.If there is any color that has
ever come close to defining a gender, it's pink
Culturally, it has long been assigned to girls
And for generations of women who were stereotyped and bullied into polite smiles and reassuring deference, pink was their bane
Over time, pink ribbons came to symbolize serious women's issues - although typically discussed in soft and fuzzy tones.But this is era of
The color has been reclaimed and redefined
It is not about patience and calm or kumbaya balm of we-are-all-equal
In a November CNN interview, Pelosi noted that no one is indispensable, "but some of us are just better at our jobs than others." That
wasn't overconfident swagger
But it was kind of honesty that women mostly don't offer up about themselves, because that's not what little girls in powder pink were
They were taught to whisper with humility.Fuchsia roars.These women of new Congress, some of them, actually a lot of them, did not shy away
from using fashion as a tool, from taking that quintessentially female pastime - one derided for being frivolous - and turning it to their
They used their attire to lure cameras, to start tongues wagging and to make viewers reconsider their preconceptions about how Americans are
defined, who has right to lead and, ultimately, what power looks like.Rep
Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., wore a Palestinian thobe in honor of her mother
Tlaib, who is first Palestinian American elected to Congress, recalled in an essay for Elle that as a child, she would watch as her mother
sat on floor stitching and embroidering gowns with a lamp at her side
The decision was a statement about Tlaib's background and a future in which it can be as welcomed in United States as Western European roots
Debra Haaland, D-N.M., expressed her Native American heritage in turquoise jewelry and immaculate embroidery while also underscoring one of
her campaign promises, which was to focus attention on missing and murdered Native women
African American congresswoman Barbara Lee, D-Calif., had a kente cloth wrap draped around her shoulders
Each of them used fashion to press point that diversity is essential to power dynamic.There's also power in truth
And sometimes that truth is best delivered in platinum Hollywood curls and a pin-tucked blouse
Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., paired her red-carpet hairdo with a form-fitting floral pencil-skirt and a dove-gray fur stole for her swearing-in
The ensemble was frothy and lighthearted
It was a little sexy but mostly sassy
It was a rejection of stuffiness
It was antithesis of gruff, white-haired men in dark suits
And if anyone thought it was inappropriate or silly, well, only response to that sentiment is that Sinema won election and her constituents
surely knew exactly what they would be getting - which is not their grandma's senator.Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., who came to United States as a
refugee from Somalia, wore a hijab at a time when both Muslims and refugees have been vilified
She also wore white, as did Madeleine Dean, D-Pa., and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y
Their attire stood out as symbolic of a new beginning, as well as a nod to women's suffrage movement
As Pelosi noted in her speech, this year marks 100th anniversary of women having right to vote
Their color choice underscored occasion and asked: What are we doing with our voteFashion communicated a visual story about day's place in
country's ongoing narrative and ways in which these newly sworn-in Congresswomen define their roles and themselves
Their choices placed them within particular communities; setting - Capitol Hill - connected those varied communities in a singular national
The fashion was personal and political
Individual as well as universal.The breadth of it spoke of idealistic notion of freedom - of right to simply be
Fashion in this context was not about looking au courant or attractive by some arbitrary standard
Fashion was a statement of intent
What do these women plan to do Blow off dust; listen to as many voices as possible; be bold.Their opening gambit was made plain and eloquent
