Most television viewers in the eighties and nineties, especially from Arab and Islamic countries, cannot forget the astonishment that struck them whenever they watched fashion shows or the latest haircuts in the United States or Europe. They would often exclaim in disbelief, “What is this crazy world?! Can any sane person anywhere in the world wear such clothes or style their hair in such a way?!”
This astonishment was justified for two primary reasons: firstly, the designs of these fashions were entirely inappropriate for the religious values or societal customs that most people in these countries adhered to. Secondly, the number of people who followed or adhered to such new designs or trends was limited even in their countries of origin, mostly belonging to specific social or professional groups or rebellious youth movements.
Soft Infiltration
It's not difficult to divide the relationship of our Arab and Islamic countries with Western fashion and its trends into two historical phases. The first phase was the period of Western colonization, during which the West controlled these countries and their resources. This created a sense of inferiority among some, leading to a desire to imitate the West in every movement and stillness, to the extent that some intellectual and cultural elites openly advocated for it. They were leaders of the Westernization trend, seeing the West as the pinnacle of progress and scientific advancement. This call was met by limited societal groups.
At first, some of these individuals firmly believed that following these fashion trends was a sign of sophistication and civilization, marking the belonging to high social classes. This belief, besides being considered a necessity of “elegance,” became a measure of the openness and desire to keep up with development and imitate the West.
The second phase began after the departure of foreign occupation and the rise of national sentiment among most populations, who earnestly sought to reclaim their religious values and unique traditions and heritage. This made fashion programs and their content a source of mockery for many years. People only watched them out of necessity, as they occupied a time slot on limited television channels back then, or as an amusing form of entertainment, remaining largely ineffective.
However, in contrast, the West did not tire of working to standardize societies according to its desires, focusing on other mechanisms that, though old, were more effective. One of the most notable was cinema. The fame gained by actors and actresses was enough to make them models for imitation by young men and women, particularly those belonging to specific social classes. This imitation then slowly spread to other segments of society.
Then came globalization and the accompanying communication revolution, which supported the Western aim of standardizing societies, not just in terms of fashion or hairstyles, but in everything that a person might use or do: cars, electrical appliances, accessories, even types of food and drinks, and ways of eating and moving.
Class-based Fashion
Over time, we ended up with two types of fashion and new trends. One type is followed by the social elite and the wealthy, involving global brands (labels) in fashion, and the accessories that come with it, such as expensive glasses, key chains, watches, rings, and bracelets. The other type is the fashion of the poor, laborers, and marginalized groups in popular areas. These groups also keenly follow their trends, some of which try to imitate the fashion of the wealthy, at least in appearance.
Despite both groups adhering to fashion, there is a significant disparity in their appearances, naturally reinforcing social class distinctions and creating a vast gap between two classes. However, the important thing for the West is to standardize the lives of both classes and push them to eagerly follow everything it offers, keeping everyone within its control.
Fashion and Identity
Some might argue that there is no connection between adhering to national attire and maintaining identity. After all, some nations have changed aspects of their culture but preserved their national attire as a symbol. Other nations have not held on to their national dress but have separated it from the ability to innovate culturally and maintain their identity. Supporting this is the fact that Islam does not prescribe a specific dress code for men or women but sets certain standards to ensure modesty and cover.
However, amidst the identity struggle, it has become clear that attire is indeed an expression of identity and that clothing is a symbol of nations. This is highlighted by Western scholar Bernard Lewis, who stated, "Clothing expresses identity and affiliation." Therefore, especially for women, and in this era of cultural and civilizational subjugation, Arab and Islamic societies have not been immune to the frenzy of Western fashion and clothing. Unfortunately, many have chased after the latest fashion trends, cosmetics, and designs from Western fashion houses, imitating Western women in their dress and customs. Meanwhile, some Western fashion lines have blurred the lines between men's and women's clothing, leading many men to imitate women's clothing styles and vice versa, which clearly contradicts Islamic teachings and societal customs.
Beauty Standards
The issue did not stop at the globalization of fashion and its trends. The West aimed for a deeper goal: to establish new standards of beauty for men and women, which in themselves became a vast trade, generating enormous profits. For example, the newly marketed standard of female beauty in the West required tools that the West itself manufactured and continually developed.
Naturally, the West aimed to overturn a value principle upheld by most societies: that a woman's beauty is not in her face but in her morals. The model the West persistently presented and promoted was one of allure and seduction, with specific characteristics defined by the West. The West used all forms of psychological influence to convince others, resulting in staggering figures for the consumption of cosmetics, powders, hair dyes, nail polishes, lipsticks, perfumes, and slimming drugs and devices, which have multiplied fivefold in the past thirty years according to statistics.
Additionally, the phenomenon of skin whitening to resemble Western blondes or tanning to achieve a bronze look, millions of liposuction and lip augmentation, face and neck lifts, and cosmetic surgeries in various body parts to conform to Western standards, have all spread. These standards continuously evolve based on developments in Europe and America, which certainly do not align with the beauty standards traditionally upheld by different nations.
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