A harlot in drag

Well, it seems like no matter how hard I try, I end up either looking like a man or like a prostitute.

Actually, I often end up OK, as I brought a lot of flowy skirt type things and blouses. The difference between what's considered acceptable dress for women in Canada and Uganda is quite interesting, however.

Here's an example of a serious letter to the editor sent to the respected New Vision newspaper:

Women should keep away from wearing pants
Monday, 28th November, 2005

SIR — In Uganda women have become masters at encroaching on men’s domain. First they tried to oust us in the corporate world, then in sports and for now, after the female condom, they are fighting for trousers with us.

For smooth running of our nation, let women keep away from trousers. Some of these women have decided to forego decency, leaving men to feast their eyes on the display of stretch marks and navels.

Yet they claim to understand that men are weak creatures who ‘melt’ at the sight of such delicate body parts.

Women seem to forget that trousers display their worst flaws which vary in degree from one wearer to another.

Until women change to long, loose skirts or decent trouser suits, men will not let them pass by undisturbed.

Chuma Festus Gakuo
Makerere University

(note: I am pretty sure that "stretch marks" refers not to those marks on skin from gaining or losing weight, but to the pull of fabric tight against the body)

The status of women here is something I haven't yet touched on. I'm trying to keep things light here, so I'm going to skip articulating a long list of incredibly depressing and graphic things and just say it's different than what Canadians are used to. At the same time, the status of women changes depending on who and where you are. The life of an educated woman in Kampala is worlds apart from that of most rural women, and the attitudes of the men are just as divergent.

As a foreigner, I can largely get away with doing whatever I want, but my wardrobe choices do sometimes have an effect.

As the letter to the editor indicates, the men here are particularly obsessed with the bottom half of a woman's anatomy. I try to be as inconspicuous as possible (not very easy for a white person in Africa) and so I tend to keep my shorts in the closet. An exception was when I ran the Kampala 10km race. During the race was fine, but I suffered endless harassment both to and from the race.

Women who exhibit certain behaviours commonly associated with men are assumed to be prostitutes. Of course, unbeknownst to me, I have been exhibiting these behaviours pretty much constantly.

I also wear pants at every given opportunity, something relatively new here. My neighbour Rebecca went to visit the Kasubi Tombs the other day. The Tombs are the burial site of one of the Kabakas, the kings of the Baganda (who live in Buganda in Uganda, where each individual Muganda can speak Luganda -holy complicated!). Anyway, Rebecca went there with her friend Blaze (a Ugandan). The man selling entrance tickets gave her a dirty look, threw a sarong-type piece of fabric to her and in a most accusatory tone told Blaze, "She must wear that because SHE IS DRESSED LIKE A MAN!"

So here I am, dressed like a man and acting like a prostitute, but I am assured by my friends that people here understand that my culture is different and they forgive accidental transgressions. Except for when dear old Chuma Festus Gakuo of Makerere University sees me in my running clothes. Then it's no holds barred.