Introduction

While individual popular press articles are imperfect indices of the complexities and contradictions of a broad and diverse culture, they can be important and resonant snapshots of the state of play on key issues such as gender and class. In this context, I want to reference two headline pieces published in late 2006 as I worked on this book. These articles appeared in two of the top three most well-read American daily newspapers: USA Today and The New York Times (and in the case of the latter on the front page on Christmas Eve). The fi rst reported on the growing number of American Christian women (of various denominations) choosing to cover their hair and don “modest dress.” In “Traditional Living Takes Modern Spin,” Elizabeth Weise noted that the Internet had been adopted by many such women to shop for conservative clothing and head coverings and to affi liate with like-minded women via discussion groups. Weise observes in passing that most of her interview subjects for the piece sought the permission of their husbands before talking to her.