Fashion Style Advice

The Obuzor is the king of Ibusa, Ibusa, Igbuzo, Igbuzor, Igbouzo, Ibuzo, Ibuzor is a town located 6 miles from Asaba, the present capital of Delta State, Nigeria. The title of “Obuzor” means “the first” or “number one” by the meaning of this title it may literarily be interpreted to be the number one citizen of Ibusa.   Kingship is not strange to Ibusa as at some point in the history of the town, several sons of the town had been known to declare themselves the King of the town, though using elements of force to achieve this feat. The self-declaration of Ezesi as the King of Ibusa claiming to derive his authority from the then Oba of Benin is best memorable to history.

According to tradition, a coup was plotted against him by his chiefs because of the frequent interference of his wife as the tradition of the town forbids the involvement of women in the traditional affairs of the town. King Ezesi was said to have fled to Ejeme-Unor, an Anioma community in Delta State, and never returned, though his subjects would, notably the last “Ohene” the Chief Priest of Oboshi River who died in January 2009, and has since been buried. Thus the Ibusa community has tasted monarchical system of government as well as republican or the typical stateless nature of the Igbo. Gerontocracy is also not strange to the people of Ibusa as the political system by which the oldest man in the community becomes the ruler has also been with the people.

This system was in place until the Ibusa Community Development Union (ICDU) devised the Obuzor political system for the town. The introduction of the Obuzor institution became one of the most controversial and turbulent period in the modern history of the town, for the reason I have pointed out in series of my previous write-ups. First, monarchical system of government as relatively strange in the modern history of the town should be counted responsible, second, the crafters of the institution in my opinion did not do a fine and exhaustive job because it was the institution was created in the manner that the Diokpa and Obuzor have to share certain kingly responsibilities, it is in this instance that who presides over the Izu Ibusa between the Diokpa and Obuzor remains an issue yet unresolved till today, thus the Obuzor institution is a fine but not thorough idea. Third, some people blame what they term the overbearing character and nature of the present Obuzor on his subjects to be the reason of controversy still trailing the stool. There are still a number of indigenes who maintain that the idea of Obuzor was to assist the Diokpa and not to rein as a new king of the town, they call this institution “Onu Diokpa”

Whatever Obuzor means to different people, the institution by the decision of the Supreme Court of Nigeria 6-9 of 1995 and created by the legal notices of 6-9, Edict No. 1 of 1996 and official document has come to be recognized as the King of Ibusa by both the Delta State Government and Federal Republic of Nigeria. What it now means for the people is sit down and fashion out a peaceful and practicable means by which the community will be moved developmentally.

As noted earlier in this write-up, the Ibusa Community Development Union (ICDU) is the architect of Obuzor following the popular belief in some quarters that the town was facing challenges in traditional leadership.

By 1995, it was agreed that with gerontocracy political system of government then in place in the town, the Diokpa was too senile and infirmed to attend to modern businesses, it was also reported that many “Onu Diokpas” (Diokpa’s messengers) availed themselves of opportunities to make decisions on behalf of Diokpa. Some of these “Onu Diokpas” may have also become more influential than the Diokpa whom they were to represent.

The Ibusa community Development Union (ICDU) then took it upon himself to set up a committee to evolve a political leadership for the town in which the following were members:

1. Obi Senator Nosike Ikpo (Chairman) 2. Prof M. A. Onwuejeogu 3. Mr. B. O. Mgbolu

The Umuekea Family Union, Lagos Branch should be given tremendous credit for the roles it played in making the Obuzor institution a reality in the community. However, the generality of Ibusa indigenes should be encouraged to continue working towards the advancement and possible transformation of the institution for we know that even the oldest and longest monarchical institutions in the country are not without certain faults.

Today, HRH Obi (Professor) Louis Chelunor Nwaoboshi is the Obuzor of Igbuzo, as stated here he has come to remain as the paramount ruler of the community by the irreversible and irrevocable judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria which so recognizes him, and we can do nothing to upturn it but constructively work towards the betterment of the institution. After all, like the children of Israel under Prophet Samuel, we requested for a king from the Delta State Government and got one.

The traditional administration of the Ibusa community is recognized as thus:

Offices

1. The Obuzor of Igbuzo 2. The Senior Diokpa of Igbuzo 3. The Senior Diokpas of Otus, Ogbes and Villages 4. The Warlords of the Otus (i.e. Otu Odogwu, Otu Uwolo and Otu Iyase 5. Other traditional Chiefs (i.e. Ikwelle and Omu of Igbuzo) 6. The President-General of Ibusa Community Development Union

Organs

1. Izu Ibusa (The people’s parliament at the clan level) 2. Obuzor in council 3. Otu meetings 4. Ogbe meetings 5. Umunna meetings

Obuzor in council

1. The Obuzor (The Chairman) 2. The ten distinguished sons and daughters one from each village of the town 3. The Odogwu 4. The Uwolo 5. The Iyase 6. Chief Priest/Ikwelle 7. President-General of Ibusa Community Development Union

Please take note that by the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, the three Otus were autonomatically transformed to ruling houses, and emergence of Obuzor must rotate according to among these Otus based on seniority i.e. Otu Odogwu, Otu Uwolo and Otu Iyase. The present Obuzor is from Otu Odogwu, and in accordance with the said judgment, the Otu Uwolo will eligibly produce the next Obuzor for the community and it shall be the turn of Otu Iyase.   

Men’s underwear has evolved over the years. In most people’s lifetime they have seen how underwear has gone from a quite ordinary piece of clothing to something that varies in length, color and design.

So what is the history of underwear, you may ask. Is there a history to underwear? Certainly, just as there is a history to about anything, even men’s underwear has started somewhere in time. Of course the only way to trace the history of anything is through paintings, writings and art.

So, the earliest traces of underwear starts with the Egyptians and their hieroglyphics. These underwear designs date back the 2nd millennium and show Egyptians wearing loincloths. Underwear was so important to the Egyptians that Pharaohs were often buried when these garments.

In Greece, slaves simply wore loincloths.  The closest article of clothing worn by men in ancient Rome was called a subligaculum, which in modern terms means a pair of shorts or a loincloth and this was worn under a toga or tunic.  For other Greeks, the ‘chiton’, an oblong piece of woolen cloth large enough to wrap around the body, was wore and then often fastened beneath by men who were physically active.

Pull-on underpants (not pull-ups) were invented in the 13th century and underwear started to become important garment. Of course these garments looked like baggy drawers and were called ‘braies’. Knights wore ‘braies’ under several layers of clothing topped by their armor. The braies was stepped into and then laced or tied around the waist and legs at about mid-calf.

During the Renaissance, the braies became shorter to accommodate longer styles of chausses. Chausses were form fitting like modern hose and were typically very snug on the legs and open at the crotch.  This is when the codpiece was added. As time passed, codpieces were shaped to emphasize the male genitalia and eventually often became padded and bizarrely shaped.

In America, pre Civil War, “drawers” were worn from the waist down and were typically made of wool flannel. A new design that was knee length with a simple button overlap in front and a drawstring at the waist in the back also became popular. This was also worn with an upper garment made of wool flannel, which was worn next to the skin for added warmth.

Then came the invention of water-powered spinning machines and the cotton gin during the Industrial Revolution. Underwear could now be mass-produced and for the first time, people began buying their underwear in stores rather than making them at home. The standard undergarment of this period for men, women, and children was the union suit, which provided coverage from the wrists to the ankles. The union suits of the era were usually made of knitted material and included a drop flap in the back to ease visits to the toilet. Because the top and bottom were united as a one-piece garment it received the name union suit. Hanes opened several mills producing ‘union suits’.

The union suit went out of style by the 1930s and men were favoring shorter underwear again. By this time elastic was invented which replaced buttons, snaps and ties.  The buttonless underwear, as it was known, had been the first ‘boxer shorts.’

The y-vent crotch on underwear was created by ‘Jockey’ also in the 1930s. In 1936 OMunsingwear’ developed the ‘kangeroo pouch’ underwear which used a horizontal vent.

During the second World War soldiers didn’t want to be too conspicuous during battles so, while washing their underwear, whites were dyed olive green. The idea of colored underwear caught on and from the 1950s on, underwear became more innovative and exciting with the introduction of color and pattern. New fabrics were introduced such as rayon, Dacron and DuPont nylon. Nylon tricot briefs were made in a multitude of colors. This was followed by the introduction of Lycra and Spandex.

In the 1970s and 1980s briefs got briefer and underwear was becoming a ‘fashion’ item.

By the 1990s and new millennium people saw everything from boxer briefs, Thongs and G Strings become a common choice for men’s underwear/

Today, men aren’t left with only loin clothes or long underwear as their only choice for undergarments, no, their choices are nearly limitless. And there you have the brief history of men’s underwear.

It’s no big secret that fashion recycles its old trends. Ask any fashion slave, and she’ll be happy to confirm that the styles are cyclical. Currently, this fashion practice seems to be taking place more than ever. Recent fashion is taking its clothing cues from numerous 20th century styles, running the gamut from the 1950s through the 1980s.

What does this mean for us Baby Boomers?

Whether you once wished you were old enough to be a Beatnik or a teenybopper, or as a teenager turned into a hippie or a Mod, you’ll easily spot some of the fashion elements from your formative years in today’s trends.

Still have a pair of cigarette pants stashed away? Go find them, because they are today’s skinny jeans. Same goes for 1960s-era pyramid coats, A-line shift dresses, and pea coats.

If tracksuits, tweeds or fringed boots from the 1970s were more your style, you’re in luck. Those are back in, too. You might also want to look through your closet for 1970s granny skirts, peasant blouses, and anything resembling the hippie look. It’s all the rage again, only now it’s called bohemian style.

Feel silly wearing this look? Give it to your trendy daughter in college, she’ll know what to do with it.

All of this fashion “borrowing” from past trends may seem to cast current style makers in a lazy light, but it has been common practice for ages. The hippie and Mod looks of the 1960s borrowed elements from the 1920s flapper style. The 1980s “big shoulders” look was a throwback to the 1940s.

Yes, the term for hip huggers is now low-rise jeans and Mohawks became faux-hawks, but everyone knows they come from our generation. Remember what your mother said? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Baby Boomers, consider yourselves complimented.

Have something to add to this story? Continue your trip down memory lane at Boomer Yearbook.

For www.boomeryearbook.com

For centuries individuals or societies have used clothes and other body adornment as a form of nonverbal communication to indicate occupation, rank, gender, sexual availability, locality, class, wealth and group affiliation. Fashion is a form of free speech. It not only embraces clothing, but also accessories. What we wear and how and when we wear it, provides others with a shorthand to subtly read the surface of a social situation.

How we perceive the beauty or ugliness of our bodies is dependant on cultural attitudes to physiognomy. In many cultures, those defining fashion are the cultural icons. This is why newspapers and magazines report on what celebrities and even politicians are wearing.

Examining who is wearing what through print media dates as far back as to even the 1700s. People pored over fashion magazines to see the latest styles. Women and dressmakers outside the French court relied on sketches to see what was going on. The famous French King Louis XIV said that fashion is a mirror. Louis himself was renowned for his style, which tended towards extravagant laces and velvets.

We are constantly being bombarded with new fashion ideas from music, videos, books, and television. Movies also have a big impact on what people wear.

Sociologists believe group affiliation is our prime concern with regard to fashion. As long as some group similarity is identified within the group, our personal fashion whether current or dated can belong to any tribe. It is the sense of belonging marked by how we fashion ourselves that gives us the tribal connection.

At the same time, we as human beings desire differentiation. People are often socially and economically labeled by their clothing or fashion. In history, the Edwardians were socially stratified into those who wore tailor made clothing down to those who wore other people’s cast offs. The poor simply looked poor, because their raiment betrayed them. The rich and nouveau riche displayed their wealth through an iconography of signs and symbols that enhanced their body image in the eyes of those that saw themselves as socially inferior.

Today, the purchase of fashionable clothes, fabrics, or accessories becomes a visual currency and can speak to one’s status. People are so aware of the fact that others make judgments about them through their clothes and accessories that many run up huge debts to appear to belong to a particular lifestyle. Only individuals with a strong sense of self-identity stick their necks out and admit to wearing items that others might consider dubious or passé.

In reality, there are many reasons we wear what we wear.

* Protection from cold, rain and snow: mountain climbers wear high-tech outerwear to avoid frostbite and over-exposure.

* Physical attraction: many styles are worn to inspire “chemistry.”

* Emotions: we dress “up” when we’re happy and “down” when we’re upset.

* Religious expression: Orthodox Jewish men wear long black suits and Islamic women cover every part of their body except their eyes.

* Identification and tradition: judges wear robes, people in the military wear uniforms, brides wear long white dresses.

The fact is, fashion is big business. More people are involved in the buying, selling and production of clothing than any other business in the world. Everyday, millions of workers design, sew, glue, dye, and transport clothing to stores. Ads on buses, billboards and magazines give us ideas about what to wear, consciously, or subconsciously. Choosing what we wear may be more complex in nature to ourselves than we imagined, ask yourself – why determines your fashion?

Free will is an instinctive part of human nature; every person desires to live their life on their own terms. Regardless to where people live in the world the quest for freedom, love and recognition are strong motivators of behavior along with the pursuit of the necessities of life and power.

It is obvious that life is a dichotomy; much like a chess game there are two sides in play and it is no different within the gay rights movement.  While all people desire to have freedom and a certain amount of control over what happens in their life, there are individuals with the desire to control the way people live. 

It is not realistic to presume that everyone is the same; individuals with the “live and let live” attitude may find it difficult to understand why others do not share this perspective.  But the reality of society today shows us that part of our existence requires accepting the fact that there are individuals who feel it is their duty to impose certain standards for the benefit of society. 

The real question in the gay rights movement is: how is it possible to peacefully coexist with individuals who are afraid of homosexuals?

Understanding that the gay rights movement is linked to our inherent free will and the battle for control of it can help calm the emotional response. Historically human sexuality has been one part of our lives filled with much superstition and fear. The power of sexuality is undeniable; it is through this aspect of our existence that the human race is perpetuated and many people feel for this reason alone, our sexual behavior must be controlled.

The first reference used to justify many of the acts that have been imposed upon homosexuals is religious in nature.  In the early days of organized society religion was used as the cornerstone for sexual behavior.  The Mosaic Law was used to organize many of the basic precepts in our society that in turn were translated into the civil and criminal code of governments.

The biblical references to homosexuality have been held up as a banner to justify much of the sexual oppression that has been levied upon individuals who proclaim their sexual preference for the same sex.  Many organized religious groups clung to a subconscious fear for the extinction of the human race as their justification for some of the most extremist acts against homosexuals in history. 

Although we are now in the 21st century, with thousands of advancements that helped society to evolve to its present state, there are still individuals whose attitudes are prehistoric when it comes to accepting that love knows no gender.

The rise in the choice of homosexuality in the 20th century has given many proponents evidence to refute and dispel many of the myths and superstitions regarding relationships between people of the same sex.  The gay rights movement has established the fact that that a person’s sexual preference is a private concern and should no more be used to discriminate against an individual than age, gender, creed, nationality or race.

In many people’s view it would be Utopia if the choices people make for the way they live and who they love would be accepted.  The reality of the gay rights movement today shows that progress has been made as the prevalence of same-sex unions has been revealed. Living in fear with the need to control that was the order of the day is being replaced by empathy and deeper understanding. It’s becoming clear to many that supporting the gay rights movement is essential to safeguarding all human rights as well.