ABOUT ME

Monica Morales-Garcia is an audio journalist, currently she is making radio  at Our Body Politic. She is an audio producer, fact-checker, and fashion and race scholar from Santa Ana, California. Her work centers on beauty, aesthetics, and race. Before joining Our Body Politic, Monica was a producer at WNYC’s, The Takeaway, Futuro Media's political podcasr, In The Thick and has produced narrative audio stories at Latino USA on the cultural meanings of Gossip, and the hidden history of the Little Black Dress.

WRITINGS:

BEING IN EXCESS: AN AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY OF WORK, LEISURE, AND FASHION

Abstract:
American stories can be told through the clothing we wear to work and for leisure, as our
clothing carries nonverbal insignias of who we are. This is true especially for services workers who
have to abide by strict dress codes and uniforms that let consumers know who they are. Leisure
clothing thus becomes increasingly important for many service workers looking to build identity
outside of the boundaries of their occupations. This auto-ethnography aims to understand that ways
in which clothing is a tool of control and a means for liberation. Specifically, it investigates six items of
clothing, three work uniforms and three leisurely dress items through an object-based case study,
which reveals the history and impact of the items on myself (micro) and on American culture, and
global cultures more generally (macro.)