Dressing decently is one way of preserving the dignity of our African culture and we should all adopt it.
Africans have been greatly influenced by Western culture both positively and negatively.
It has modified the way we behave, our beliefs about certain things and the way we perceive people in society.
The youth are the ones who have been affected the most.
They have developed a new style of dressing.
Conformity has put them under the intense pressure of copying the Western culture way of dressing.
Our new generation is in a haste trying to emulate what is unfolding in our digital world.
As technology advances to another phase, fashion designers have not been left behind.
They have come up with different types and styles meant to make us feel contented and complete in life.
Youths have disregarded and disrespected the traditional way of dressing which is unpleasant.
African culture modestly advocated for decent dressing.
The rulers wanted to preserve the dignity of African culture.
Today, fashion designers live under pressure.
They have to tailor clothes that resemble those designed from the western regions.
People don't want to wear clothes designed according to the specifications that our tradition suggests.
They term them as old fashion designs.
They have failed to honour the traditional modest way of dressing which is the best according to culture.
In the process, we are putting our culture at risk.
As Africans, we are slowly losing our cultural identity when we continue to embrace the dressing styles of foreign people.
However, this doesn't mean that the Western style of dressing is bad and the African style is far better. Each seems okay.
It largely depends on how culture has raised and taught an individual concerning dress code.
Foreign designers have tailored some of their clothes to the African ones.
The influence is vice versa. We have some of the factors which have triggered indecent styles of dressing in society today.
Poor parenting can be blamed as the major factor contributing to that.
Parents are mandated to guide and educate their children on what is right and what is wrong in terms of dressing.
They are to serve as role models. Some parents would never mind dressing appropriately while around their children or in public.
They forget their behaviour has got serious implications for the moral upbringing of their children.
The decent dressing should be embraced first at home and as children grow, they will embrace what their parents wear.
If we continue to tolerate that, we are at risk of losing our cultural identity.
More so, the dignity of African culture will be lost forever. A country can only advance when it honours its own culture.
Good parenting, correct use of technology, changing the mindset of youth and condemning indecent dressing in society will help in the appreciation of our cultural values.
Let us follow the ways of our culture. We shouldn't embrace other people's culture that will eventually shame us.
Student, Rongo University
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
