In the photographs of Kagan sitting and chatting in various Capitol Hill offices, she doesn't appear to ever cross her legs. Her posture stands out because for so many women, when they sit, they cross. People tend to mimic each other's body language during a conversation, especially if they're trying to connect with one another. But even when Kagan sits across from Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who has her legs crossed at the knees, Kagan keeps both feet planted firmly on the ground. Her body language will not be bullied into conformity.
She does not cross her legs at the ankles either, the way so many older women do. Instead, Kagan sits, in her sensible skirts, with her legs slightly apart, hands draped in her lap. The woman and her attire seem utterly at odds. She is intent on being comfortable. No matter what the clothes demand. No matter the camera angle.
Hat tip to DougJ at Balloon Juice for the “I smell bullshit” alert:
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| Elena Kagan doing what Robin Givhan says she won't do |
Robin Givhan is one of our worst serial offenders; who can forget her shock over Hillary Clinton’s cleavage, or her sneering disapproval over the clothes worn by Justice John Roberts’ wife and children at his confirmation hearing.
But the coup de grace was her (actually flattering) piece on newly-anointed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Yes, Pelosi’s wardrobe is “chic” but cripes, a professional woman who has just taken a huge chunk out of the glass ceiling by becoming the country's first female House Speaker doesn't need to be judged by her wardrobe. How many stories did Givhan do on Denny Hastert’s rumpled suits? None.
Remembering that this person won a Pulitzer Prize for criticism makes me think something is seriously wrong with the world.
I get that she’s a fashion editor, and I get that I’m not in the fashion world so maybe I don’t understand the Super Incredible Importance Of A Person’s Fashion Choices And The Deep Significance Implied Therein. But honest to God I think you people takes yourselves waaaay too fucking seriously sometimes. Image isn’t everything on the Supreme Court -- hey, SCOTUS Justices all wear the same black robe, which probably means fashion is the last barometer we are to use when considering these folks.
Honestly, unless they are wearing a clown suit (or Dick Cheney’s “I’m cleaning out the garage today” garb worn at the Auschwitz memorial) I don't care what they are wearing, really, I don't. And I'm tired of the media holding professional women to a different standard regarding clothing than they do men. You can call it "fashion" all you want, but to me it's just another way you're being sexist.
