Month: February 2021

Do Arranged Marriages Still Conform to Narrow Ideals of Beauty?

By Keisha P. Crabtree 1 week ago
The Indian society perpetuates the belief that women who do not tick all boxes in the ‘perceived beauty checklist’ might not find the ‘right partner’, or could remain single for life. | Representational image

The Indian society perpetuates the belief that women who do not tick all boxes in the ‘perceived beauty checklist’ might not find the ‘right partner’, or could remain single for life. | Representational image

Akanksha Batra registered herself on a matrimonial website in 2019 only to be objectified within the system of patriarchal conformity. Most men who she ‘matched’ with asked the Delhi-based marketing professional me to lose weight. “You have a pretty face, you just need to shed a few pounds” was what she was subjected to, and that’s how Batra’s experiences with her arranged marriage led her to binge-watch the Netflix reality show, ‘Indian Matchmaking’ during the lockdown in 2020, one that created quite a stir for normalising archaic practices prevalent in India’s arranged marriages.

While many called the show ‘regressive’, others praised it for holding up a mirror to society. You could be on either side, but

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Fry’s Electronics Goes Out of Business

By Keisha P. Crabtree 1 week ago
(Photo by Andrej Sokolow/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Another one bites the dust: Online shopping and a global pandemic have forced big-box store Fry’s Electronics to close all locations, effective immediately.

Known for its elaborate decorations (including huge statues of pop culture characters and retro car bodies as dining tables), the family-owned operation began as a 20,000 square-foot electronics store in Sunnyvale, Calif. At its peak, the chain operated 34 stores in nine states.

“After nearly 36 years in business as the one-stop-shop and online resource for high-tech professionals … Fry’s Electronics, Inc. has made the difficult decision to shut down its operations and close its business permanently as a result of changes in the retail industry and the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to a message on the company website.

Fry's Electronics interior

(Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

Fry’s ceased regular operations today, beginning what it called “an orderly wind-down

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French Women Have Worn Their Shirts Like This for Years

By Keisha P. Crabtree 1 week ago

Refinery 29 UK

Conspirituality Is On The Rise In The UK’s Yoga Community

When Stewart Robertson, a 58-year-old statistician from Milton Keynes, received a Facebook message from his female yoga teacher* linking to an anti-vaxx propaganda video, he was shocked but perhaps not totally surprised. About 18 months before, she’d sent him a Facebook message containing 5G conspiracy theories. “I’d alway thought of yoga as something idealistic, all about ‘flower power’ and closer to the ‘left’,” he tells me. “But these kinds of posts, they’re coming from the alt-right.” While Stewart and his classmates largely brushed off the 5G email, over the past three months their teacher’s pushing of conspiracies – which she’ll post on social media or send directly to her students’ work emails – has escalated. It prompted Stewart and his classmates to confront her in an email over “content [that] really needs to be challenged”. Because of

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Black Contributions to Men’s Style

By Keisha P. Crabtree 1 week ago

The influence of Black style and culture on men’s wear is immeasurable.

Many aspects of men’s style and tailoring today have roots and influences in Black culture and youth movements, but the contributions from the community often go without mention.

“There were many Black people in history in Savile Row, but once one person becomes famous you don’t hear about the rest,” said Art Comes First cofounder Sam Lambert, a former Savile Row tailor.

Lambert and Shaka Maidoh established Art Comes First in 2010 after meeting in West London and bonding over vintage clothing, music and subcultures. The fashion label, art house and consultancy also produces bespoke clothing, and is presenting its AW21 collection dedicated to tailoring and made-to-order styles. The pair entered Savile Row through British fashion designer Ozwald Boateng, the British-Ghanaian fashion designer who opened his first headquarters on Savile Row in 2002 and first flagship on the

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