Cultured clothing.

Provided by 7DAYS.ae

The raid by Texas authorities on a reclusive polygamous sect in April and their seizure of 400 children amid alleg-ations of abuse has had an unexpected consequence - the launch of a new clothing line. Women from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who made clothes en masse for the children taken into state custody, have now turned their skills to commerce and launched an online shop.

The austere dresses with long-sleeves and high collars, loose-fitting pants, long-johns and modest blouses worn by members of the sect are reminiscent of 19th century American pioneers and highlighted the sect's isolation. But with the children ret-urned to their legal guardians following a court ruling in May, the sect's members are turning their hands to providing their distinctive clothes to the general public - and the demand is strong.

"We don't know what to expect on demand but we have a flood of interest," Maggie Jessop, a sect member, said. At the web site, www.fdlsdress.com, the women propose clothing for children and teens that "meets the FLDS standards for modesty and neatness".

Among the items for sale is a "Princess" dress with long sleeves and wide pleats, while the site's founders are hoping to soon add recipes and songs.

The investigation into allegations of "spiritual" marriages of underage girls to older men at the sect compound continues, although no arrests have been made.

Officials said girls were being "groomed" to accept sex with their middle-aged "spiritual husbands" as soon as they hit puberty and boys were being indoctrinated to perpetuate the cycle of abuse.

A[umlaut] 2007 Al Sidra Media LLC 

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