By Gray. Photo by Galerie Noir dIvoire

Fashion is not just about clothing. It is about how through the use pieces of fabrics, one communicates to the rest of the world, one’s membership to a group, a community or a to certain circle.

Like in the rest of the Maghreb, nowadays, in Algeria, people are taking their fashion cues from televisions shows. It’s no longer uncommon to see young men wearing short and hair slicked back by spray while young women, in a society that allows them very little personal freedom, defy patriarchal dictates with skinny jeans that accentuate their curves.

Yet, the choice of one’s fashion is never simple, even if Western television influences the looks of the Algerians, it still within the strict boundaries of existing gender norms. Therefore, for one to take fashion “risks” can have a political and revolutionary dimension.

So as Kamel, a young Algerian explains: “The Algerian society considers some clothes as gay clothing. For instance, wearing a short is not a simple stylistic choice. When worn above the knee, a short can make you look like a gay with the verbal abuses that come with it. It’s rare to find a guy who dares to wear pale pink or vibrant colors, since in our society certain colors have been dimmed to belong exclusivity to gays.” Yet this young man claims and assumes his love for queer fashion, which he adapts based on his moods: “I am someone who likes to take care of him and his image, but I try to ensure that fashion follows me instead of the other was around. I make sure to be stylish, by carefully selecting outfits that flatter my body.”

But, he wonders: “I think these days, there is no gay fashion itself since even heterosexuals are increasingly paying attention to their appearance. I work in the cosmetics industry where I see more and more women buying skincare for their men, or men themselves coming to seek advice. In that sense, I think Algeria is opening up a little and evolving. ”

Fashion can also be a code, a sign of recognition, this first message that communicate to others if the other person is available or not. Thus, the use of a ring on one’s thumb. Whether it is on a girl’s or a boy’s thumb, wearing a ring tells the other person that he/she is free to engage. A ring on a thumb has quickly become a distinctive sign in the queer community.

Fashion is therefore a means to exist under the nose of the traditions of our societies that sometimes go to the extremes.

So, it is in these contexts that the fashion wears its best clothes, that of a silent revolution, a sexual revolution, a revolution where clothing becomes a symbol of belonging, an identity and even a means of combat. Some say: “Tell me what you’re wearing and I’ll tell you who you are.” They might be right.