"Put Some Clothes On" :A LETTER TO MY TEEN-AGED SISTERS

The following artice was recently published the the African-American News & Issues.

By Deric Muhammad Published 05/11/2009

Summer is approaching and the temperature is getting warmer. This time of year people make all sorts of changes and adjustments in their lifestyles. But, there is one adjustment that I have observed over the years that pains me to my heart.
During the Spring/Summer months, women wear less clothing. While some men may consider this a summer perk, ask any man how he feels when his own daughter starts to emulate this behavior. Watch his “kool-aid” smile turn into a wrinkled faced frown. It is because many men are entertained by the revealing clothing of an attractive woman. However they want better for their daughters. I’m only keeping it real.
The way that a person dresses says a lot about the way that person thinks. I am not advocating we judge individuals by material things, but it is true that we communicate ideas through styles.
I remember a close friend telling me the story of how he picked his uncle up from the bus station after he was released from prison. The year was 1994 and he’d been in prison for 12 years. As he rode through the downtown streets of Houston, he kept saying that he couldn’t believe how many prostitutes there were walking the streets during daylight hours.
My friend had to tell him that those were normal women; not prostitutes. The styles had changed so drastically while he was imprisoned that he mistook a regular sister on her way to work for a “working girl.” True story.
I am as natural as a natural man can get. I love the sight of a beautiful woman just like the next man. But where do we draw the line, when 12-year-old girls who have the shapely bodies of grown women are walking around in skirts so short you can see their undergarments?
If a man sees that little girl from a distance he cannot delineate whether she is 12 or 25. Here it is a grown man making a u-turn in the middle of the street to get a closer look at a 12-year-old baby. Sometimes when the man realizes that she has on a middle school uniform he makes counter u-turn and asks the Lord for forgiveness. Other times, we are not so lucky.
This letter to my teen-aged sisters is to appeal to you to make sure that you are communicating the right message when you leave out of the house. The absence of the father in the home sometimes leaves a young daughter craving the attention of the male gender. When her female body parts begin to develop, she notices that boys take note and she likes the attention. If not taught properly, she will desire to wear clothing that accent the body parts she is most proud of, such as her breasts or her backside. While this may warrant her some “very temporary” attention, in the long run it will only hurt her.
To my little sisters: I must be honest with you. As a man, I know how men and boys think about women who dress to attract men to their bodies. Males LIKE women who dress provocatively, but males RESPECT females who dress respectfully. If you think I’m lying go to a job interview in a mini-dress and platform heels. You will not get that job, unless it’s in a strip club.
When a business seeks to attract the attention of potential customers, they develop advertisements. They promote products that attract the attention of certain kinds of customers. As a young lady, every time you get dressed, you are a walking billboard.
What kind of customers are you attracting with the way you dress? Any boy or young man who is only attracted to your body and your physical beauty is a person that is not worthy of you. You must be taught how to display your intelligence, talent and personality in a way that will attract a respectable young man.
Any young lady can get a male to stop and pay attention to her body, but it takes a special young lady that is secure in who she is that can make a man respect her mind. Where are the parents and mentors who will teach our young girls how to present themselves like young ladies? It’s none of my business and that’s why I’m making it my business.
When you dress this way you are also a magnet for rapists and child molesters. A study showed that most repeat-offender rapists look for female victims wearing clothing that can be easily removed. When you are walking the streets in your mini-dresses, sick men are watching you.
To my young sisters, you are too beautiful and intelligent to walk around dressed this way. Do not allow the shape of your behind to speak louder than your mind. We must respect and protect the Black female, but she must first be taught how to respect herself. And self-respect starts with the way you think, but is reflected by the way you dress. Be classy. Put some clothes on young lady. The Black man has got your back, but I’m going to have to ask you cover it up first.