Gone Quiet

[Grok]

[ly one in a skirt. All the women and all the other men were in trousers. We now may seem ‘strange’ to others not because we are MIS but simply because we are wearing a skirt.

It would seem that skirted rigs are becoming a niche thing. Perhaps that will be the future-trousers will be the dominant garment for both men and women, and for both genders skirts will be worn for a few niche activities/settings.

[moonshadow]

"Gone quiet"

I think they media is going to have bigger clicks to bait this year. We've got a nation to bust up, and we're not going to accomplish that writing stories about a handful of benign guys that just wear skirts.

Looking back however, I don't think "men in skirts" was ever really a serious thing. The transgender thingy leapfrogged us. We're not changing our gender, taking estrogen, entering into women's spaces, and generally, we're not making a stink.

We're just a bunch of guys that like to wear skirts... honestly with everything going on now, you have to admit, we're a bit of a snooze.

I still see a guy in a skirt every so often, but not as often as I used to. A lot of them put off a "don't talk to me" vibe, so I leave them alone mostly. The only one that actually fist bumped me was a homeless guy in Seattle wearing a tattered green skirt.

[Skirt18220]

I think Grok has it about right. Pants are the go to garment for both sexes now. Skirts are a niche market. Even in a woman's clothing store Skirts are rare.
I, in my area, am not seeing more men jump on the skirting train. I've been asked about it by a few men but none I know have taken it up. I certainly don't see the trend becoming common place. I think there is acceptance but it is a big step and not inexpensive to change out a wardrobe.
I wear my skirts/kilts everyday, the exception being once were below -15 C although that does depend somewhat on the wind factor. I started out in kilts and gradually included some skirts in the "drab" colours blue, grey, green, brown because I like those colours.
In closing in my opinion MIS is never going to be a big thing that all men take up. But that doesn't mean I can't do it and enjoy it.

[Grok]

Yes, a thread about contra dancing/skirts got me thinking about this. Contra dancing being a setting in which twirly skirts are an accepted option for men. Conceivably, specialized skirts for hiking and running might become acceptable options for men in those contexts. Possibly skirts for cycling (a few designs of which exist for women). Maybe sarongs for beach wear.

The future of MIS may lay in such specialized functions, with participating men wearing skirts only for these sort of niche activities.

[Damon]

I think Primary.com are fairly unique in that their Unisex or Gender Neutral children's clothing clothing has dresses and they actually sometimes show a boy modeling a dress. The question is how could we arrive at it being normal to see boys (and men) wearing dresses, not just in an online catalog to virtue signal but in real life. I am currently reading actor John Le Mesurier's autobiography. It has a picture of him age 3 in 1915 and he is wearing a dress. It was normal for boys at the time, and even when I was 3 in 1944 I sometimes played with a boy who wore dresses all the time. Although we lived in England, my grandparents and mother were Scottish so a kilt was an inevitable part of my boyhood. I wore it for special occasions and even in England there would usually be one or two other kilted boys. It was not considered weird and to a large extent still isn't weird or effeminate for a boy or man to wear a kilt. Unlike when I was a kid, boys kilts are not expensive and USA Kilts actually keeps the price as low as possible to encourage boys wearing kilts. I found out when a
Canadian grandson wanted a kilt like Grandad. USA Kilts have a YouTube channel where they suggest starting boys wearing kilts as soon as they can walk, and making it an everyday garment. My eldest son liked kilts when he was young (and also boy's dresses which we bought at Bentalls Department store in the 1960s) and as when he got a bit too old for dresses he wore a kilt a lot, eventually when he was about 8 two of his English friends (we lived in London) also took up kilt wearing. So to parents and grandparents on this forum. Nobody is going to look askance at you for dressing boys in your family in kilts and if you can start them early enough they aren't going to think it strange. They may help spread the idea that boys, and perhaps their dads, don't always have to wear pants.

[skirted84]

I might be optimistic but I think lack of attention can indicate its not newsworthy anymore. I go lots of places skirted without a second thought and can count on one hand any comments in the last few years, never outright negative. Lets face it, women probably get more judgement even in "acceptable" attire.

Its vital to put distance from the trans lobby*. In the old days it was Freestylers from men in kilts, then crossdressers from men in skirts.

* I don't count the transsexual/sex change cohort which until about 10 years ago crossdressers were never remotely associated with. Transsexuals campaigned vociferously but not with the loony ideologies of the trans lobby.

[Uncle Al]

LOVED YOUR STORY, Damon

So to parents and grandparents on this forum. Nobody is going to look askance at you for dressing
boys in your family in kilts and if you can start them early enough they aren't going to think it strange. They may help spread the idea that boys, and perhaps their dads, don't always have to wear pants.

If parents and grandparents are on this forum, we already understand this concept
and it needs to be conveyed to the rest of the "Western" world.

Uncle Al

[Stu]

It has now been nearly a year since I initiated this thread with:

Am I imagining it, or has the progress to accept men wearing skirt stalled? We don't seem to be hearing much about it in the media these days, even among fashionistas and there are few stories in the press relating to it. Is this a temporary lull? Or are we facing some blowback because people are tiring of the trans-activism lobby?

I have to say that, unless I am mistaken, the lull is continuing. I'm not routinely seeing men wearing skirts either in the street or e.g. on TV; Men's, or even unisex, skirts aren't being sold in shops in my locality from what I can see. Occasionally, an avant-garde fashion house will show a man in a skirt-like garment for a show, but it looks to me as though that's becoming less common as the novelty value has worn off. I do some voluntary work at a school and the teachers say that, while boys are told they can wear skirts if they wish, they don't - with the rare exception of a boy who is known for having gender identity issues. I have a suspicion as to why this is the case, namely that we are living in a time in which western societies are both in decline and also threatened with things like wars and concerns about national finances, democracy etc, and matters such as what each gender can wear can seem trivial in comparison.

Am I wrong? If so, please tell me.

[Barleymower]

It has now been nearly a year since I initiated this thread with:

Am I imagining it, or has the progress to accept men wearing skirt stalled? We don't seem to be hearing much about it in the media these days, even among fashionistas and there are few stories in the press relating to it. Is this a temporary lull? Or are we facing some blowback because people are tiring of the trans-activism lobby?

The lull continues.
I have to say that, unless I am mistaken, the lull is continuing. I'm not routinely seeing men wearing skirts either in the street or e.g. on TV; Men's, or even unisex, skirts aren't being sold in shops in my locality from what I can see. Occasionally, an avant-garde fashion house will show a man in a skirt-like garment for a show, but it looks to me as though that's becoming less common as the novelty value has worn off. I do some voluntary work at a school and the teachers say that, while boys are told they can wear skirts if they wish, they don't - with the rare exception of a boy who is known for having gender identity issues. I have a suspicion as to why this is the case, namely that we are living in a time in which western societies are both in decline and also threatened with things like wars and concerns about national finances, democracy etc, and matters such as what each gender can wear can seem trivial in comparison.

Am I wrong? If so, please tell me.

My daughter has told me that boys can wear skirts at school, in theory. That is the school uniform policy does not specify skirts for girls. In parctice the only way a boy could wear a skirt would be to declare himself trans and identify as a female. Then he can wear a skirt. If he just wore a skirt, he would be sent home to change due to the disruption it would cause.
I don't agree that who wears what is trivial. If it were then a man in a skirt would be greeted by "hey Stu I see you were in a skirt yesterday. Nice! Where did you get it?"
Skirt wearing is however trival compared to what is happening around the world.

[robehickman]

Concerning agender skirts in the niche of folk dance in the UK, it does seem to be gaining traction. There were a not insubstantial number of male-born people at IVFDF (inter-varsity folk dance festival) wearing skirts / skirted garments. I've seen young men at ceilidh's in kilts / other skirts, and there were also quite a few at Chippenham folk festival.

I wore skirts the whole time at both IVFDF and Chippenham, got loads of 'I love your skirt' comments, and no negative reactions.

I don't think 'skirts as a niche garment for everyone' is a bad outcome because honestly they are not very practical in a lot of situations. They get blown around easily by wind, and you have to always be aware of how you are moving / sitting to not be flashing people. They get caught on things easily and can knock things over.

Really I'm not sure how women could put up with only being allowed to wear skirts for so long.

[Grok]

I think Grok has it about right. Pants are the go to garment for both sexes now. Skirts are a niche market. Even in a woman's clothing store Skirts are rare.

I recently posted a link about scooter skirts to the Skirt Over Pants thread. I had stumbled over this, I hadn't heard of that before. An example of a niche thing going on quietly in the background. Relevant to the participants, but having very little impact on the larger society. The participants interest in MIS may be limited to that one activity, and may end up wearing only one particular skirt style.

[Grok]

MIS gaining traction one niche at a time

[STEVIE]

MIS gaining traction one niche at a time

Possibly, but each niche is probably inhabited by the same or very similar individuals.
For instance Contra dancing and folk festivals are probably attended by a fairly specific demographic sample and not representative of society as a whole.
Afraid to say too, where now the celebrity and influencer men in skirts?
Not such a big noise from them either.
Steve.

[new2skirts]

It has now been nearly a year since I initiated this thread with:

Am I imagining it, or has the progress to accept men wearing skirt stalled? We don't seem to be hearing much about it in the media these days, even among fashionistas and there are few stories in the press relating to it. Is this a temporary lull? Or are we facing some blowback because people are tiring of the trans-activism lobby?

I have to say that, unless I am mistaken, the lull is continuing. I'm not routinely seeing men wearing skirts either in the street or e.g. on TV; Men's, or even unisex, skirts aren't being sold in shops in my locality from what I can see. Occasionally, an avant-garde fashion house will show a man in a skirt-like garment for a show, but it looks to me as though that's becoming less common as the novelty value has worn off. I do some voluntary work at a school and the teachers say that, while boys are told they can wear skirts if they wish, they don't - with the rare exception of a boy who is known for having gender identity issues. I have a suspicion as to why this is the case, namely that we are living in a time in which western societies are both in decline and also threatened with things like wars and concerns about national finances, democracy etc, and matters such as what each gender can wear can seem trivial in comparison.

Am I wrong? If so, please tell me.

I believe skirted men are still out there, for instance Beyonce had her tour in the UK, and was at the Spurs stadium, London (sell out crowds) and although there's an increasingly LGBT theme to her music, many of her male fans (with full beards) were walking towards the Stadium in denim skirts, some with stockings! Skirts were your typical denim pencil/straight type. Some guys were in full dresses. That may just be the typical flamboyance her concerts bring, but it's quite something to see more than ten.

We're heading for hot weather, which used to bring the schoolboys in skirts (usually protests from not being allowed shorts), or skirted builder headlines in the Tabloid papers in the UK. Most of the skirted guys are on other media platforms, but there's regular posts and updates (Instagram, Reddit, Pinterest etc). But with civil unrest, cost of living, wars, new pandemics on horizon, economic slowdowns, Joe Public may not be about to change from his tried and tested jeans / shorts / trousers / slacks anytime soon. Fashion generally is expensive and some may not want to make waves in the workplace as job security is at it's lowest point unless they really feel it's that important to them.

[Stevej180]

My daughter is in her early 20s and goes to events like swing dancing regularly. She reports that there's usually at least one guy at any event in a skirt or dress, two at the last one she went to. Her generation don't really see it as that remarkable: they've grown up with much more diversity and with LGBT being 'normal'. I feel like everyone in that gen knows someone who is trans as well, and they just shrug and get on with it.

Whether it's a growing trend, or whether in the end it's just like seeing people in goth outfits - pretty rare, but also nothing new nowadays - time will tell.