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A little girl walks through the middle of the mall holding her aunt’s hand. Two women gawk at her, first in small glances and short whispers before they halt the maneuvering of shopping bags to steady their gaze. She turns abruptly, releasing her aunt’s hold. She looks both women squarely in the eyes and shouts emphatically, “Don’t you know you’re not supposed to stare!”

When I was a lot younger, I wore clothes that looked more like underwear. On days when I felt like being conservative, I wore hanging blouses, if not low neckline tops, paired with low-waist jeans that were ripped all over. Now I was able to document many of those days and every time I see them in my old hard drive, I also remember...