Pejic, shirtless.

(UPDATE: There was an error in the original post of this story that has since been corrected. Originally it was mentioned that the two chains were Canadian, which in fact they are not. It is not a Canadian story. The central issue, one of sexism and lifestyle prejudice, remains the same.)

This story comes to us via the Awkward and Insensitive files. Dossier magazine chose model Andrej Pejic to be their cover model for this month’s issue. Andrej appears on the cover bare chested and with hairstyle reminiscent of a woman’s. So what’s the big deal? Plenty of dudes have bared their chest or even more on the cover of a non-pornographic magazine. Why is this book related news?

Borders and Barnes & Noble have both asked Dossier to cover this issue with opaque plastic. Yeah.

Over at The Stir blog they have some more details:

The message coming out of the stores is that “the model is young and it could be deemed as a naked female.” But this isn’t about the store-goers at all. Shoppers and parents need only take a second look to realize it isn’t a woman — in particular, there are no breasts on display. I’m a mother; if that’s the hardest question my 5-year-old poses all day, I’ll do a jig in the streets. “The children” is a non-issue.

So what’s the issue?

The issue is that Pejic is not the bookstore exec’s idea of a man. He’s not a beefcake, touting six quick ways to get fit. He’s not Robert Pattinson with a 5 o’clock shadow, that bit of scruff sullying an otherwise flawless face. Of course, neither is the average American shopper (they have heard about this obesity epidemic, haven’t they?), but if the Photoshopping scandals of recent years have taught us anything, magazines aren’t about shoppers. They’re about ideals.

In an astounding double move, Borders and B&N have managed to respond to a non-issue by alienating both women and transgender men. If Borders and B&N are going to pull this kind of stunt on a magazine, they ought to put something in writing ahead of time. Something stipulating length of hair to bicep ratio would be nice. Ridiculous.

Makes one recall “On The Beach” by The Faces.

I don’t care who is watching
Don’t mind what the surfing heads might say
and though I may not be no Charlie Atlas
Gonna take my shirt off anyway