With the advent of the internet, people were better able to connect and explore, express and discover new or existing fetishes.The hanky code expanded to encompass these fetishes, communicating interests through new colors and even new fabrics, such as leather or lace. The color system has also expanded beyond hankies to other accessories. It is not uncommon to have harnesses, singlets, or leather articles in a color derived from the hanky code to indicate a desirable fetish or sexual interest. Sociological Aspect The longer lists found on the web are more elaborate and the many color codes in them are less often used in practice, although some of these colors are offered for sale at LGBT stores along with free cards listing their meanings.

Also known as flagging, the handkerchief code involves wearing a hankie or bandana in a specific colour to nonverbally communicate. SMITH: Yes, that actually is a quote from Adrienne Rich. And, not just the person’s view on talking about Othello in this way, but also the experience of others in that room for whom that kind of approach to talking about race has a definite impact. That is to say, when somebody sits or stands in a room and makes that sort of declaration, there are intended consequences. Some of us in the room are quite unsettled by that sort of statement, right? A writer, Tim Wise, talks about white privilege and power, and to quote him, he says, “That which keeps people of color off balance in a racist society is that which keeps whites in control.” MICHAEL WITMORE: From the Folger Shakespeare Library, this is Shakespeare Unlimited. I’m Michael Witmore, the Folger’s director. This podcast is called “Teach Him How To Tell My Story.” Townsend, Larry (1983). The Leatherman's Handbook II. New York: Modernismo Publications. p.26. ISBN 0-89237-010-6. And, in a real sense, in that kind of discussion, when somebody makes that kind of declaration, there’s an attempt to coopt the conversation, there’s an attempt to control the conversation, and there’s an attempt to silence those who would want to produce a sort of progressive argument about race and similar topics. And so, that is why I then referred to Adrienne Rich, where it is about a sort of view then, that would rather perpetuate the idea that we live in a world in which we think or we imagine or we speak as if whiteness is the totality of experience and knowledge.SMITH: And I think Ayanna’s point about skepticism then ties neatly into that point. That is, we need to be far more skeptical about the way we think we can very, sort of easily, tell Othello’s story. We learn from behavioral psychologists, who have done these sort of studies recently, that as a country in the United States, we’re still… 75 percent of us are more likely to be biased towards whiteness. So, if that’s true, then Shakespeare’s argument where he says, well, can we tell stories across sort of racial divides? The data I just cited would suggest to us that that is a kind of very problematic, but also, at the same time, exciting undertaking. THOMPSON: And so, while I agree and think that we’ve got to diversify the Shakespearean world to have more voices included, we also need people who already exist in the field who are willing to say, “I’m skeptical of the narrative you’re telling me. Actually, this is about race. Actually, this is about power. Actually, they’re related.” I wish that more of our colleagues would be willing to be those kinds of listeners and readers, instead of the ones who react violently or aggressively to information that seems to go against what they already know. That if we are aware that we as a culture, and a culture of critics, and a culture of audiences, etcetera, and readers and students, if we have this sort of bias that still dominates what we do, how we think, how we read race in American culture, then the end of Othello really makes a demand in us to then be much more conscious and humble at the same time, when we say we want to talk about Othello, or make declarations like, “ Othello is not about race.” But it makes us think about, “Well, how reliable are we? And what is the basis of our saying that?” I think that’s important.

The question for me, really, is whether Shakespeare, the cultural weight of Shakespeare’s fame, gets in the way of talking about race in a productive fashion. And I think this is something that’s been hard to have a real conversation about with other Shakespeareans and with practitioners, with actors and directors, because they all want to make it very relevant and make it meaningful for their audiences, whether your audience is a student, a fellow scholar, or, you know, actual theater audiences.Glymond, Joanne. "Judicial robes belonging to The Right Honorable Turlough O'Donnell Q.C." www.newry.ie. THOMPSON: I was just going to say that actually reminds me of a moment when I was teaching, last year, a large lecture class that is sort of a survey of early British literature. And I had this amazing, lively class, even though it was a lecture. There was lots of participation and the students were really engaged, whether it was “Beowulf,” or Marie de France, or whatever. Stryker, Susan; Van Buskirk, Jim (1996). Gay by the Bay: A History of Queer Culture in the San Francisco Bay Area. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. p.18. ISBN 0-8118-1187-5. SMITH: Well, some time ago, I was… You know, I’ve been always taught about the white handkerchief in Othello. You know, Ayanna will tell you, that’s sort of standard thinking on the play. But it never really sort of sat with me completely. And so, a couple years ago, I was thinking more about this, and it occurred to me as I was reading the text, that what we found there actually was a reference in the play where Shakespeare sort of makes it clear, at least to me, that… He speaks about the handkerchief “dyed in mummy.” BOGAEV: Ayanna, jump in here. Is this your experience as well of Shakespeare in academia or in circles where you’re talking about Othello?