Fashion as a United Voice

Racism:

The fashion industry has been evolving and rotating its trends and genres at an alarming rate; the result of social media. By the time you’ve spent a week on TikTok, new trends are already cycled in. What’s interesting to see, is the integration of fashion from cultures around the world, with the Western one. With this integration, a thin line begins to form between appreciation and appropriation. But this isn’t something we’re only just being introduced to.

Streetwear is accredited to a few different decades and its pioneers. Willi Smith, an African American designer from the 70s and 80s who introduced streetwear to the catwalk, had his success in South Asia, where he launched WilliWear Ltd. But it was not until the 90’s when the style really had significance worldwide. New York’s HipHop emerged alongside the Californian surf style. Mixed in with sportswear and Japanese fashion, designers like James Jebbia and Shawn Stussy allowed the hybrid genre to flourish on a global level. Its origins are rooted in the black community, and celebrities, even from the White community, took an attraction. We began to see streetwear used in media, whether it was music videos or Hollywood films. While we began to see it on the runway, streetwear became accessible and acclaimed by public communities around the world. Now a part of the mainstream industry, blogpost Vocast mentions it’s important to acknowledge streetwear as a genre rather than a trend, in order to pay homage to its Black roots, and avoid appropriation; i.e. A culture cannot be a trend. As cultural awareness progresses, especially in the white, Western world, it’s important to recognise the difference between appreciation and appropriation; the latter done by only regarding cultures as nothing more than a tool for appearances.

In her 2016 Superbowl performance, Beyonce paid tribute to many different historical Black leaders and movements, one of them being The Black Panthers Party. Just as the people of the movement, her backup dancers donned black outfits and berets upon their afros, referencing the revolutionary party and its ideologies of self-defence, in particular, against police brutality. Platforms were starting to be used more to pay tributes, and to reintroduce ideologies to the other communities, spread across media. Only a year later, Rihanna launched her cosmetic line Fenty Beauty. The cosmetic sphere has had a reputation for its lack of acknowledgement of the non-white community. Suddenly, we had someone in the industry rooting for us; we were catered to. Perhaps the two events are not interconnected, but needless to say, when fashion really pulls through with cultural representation, and in the right way, communities are seen; they have something to support in the industry.

words by Anushka Kar

Sexism:

Fashion has been used as a powerful tool to combat sexist issues for decades. From the growth of gender-neutral clothing to united community action with fashion at the forefront, the world of fashion works beyond its expected functions to incite thought and push for the change of outdated sexist practices.

Traditionally, issues of sexism have been predominantly targeted towards women and girls, however, more recently there have been movements with fashion as the driving force which have influenced men and boys to embrace their femininity and not conform to toxic masculine standards. A recent example of this was Harry Styles and his controversial Vogue cover which saw him photographed in an extravagant but beautiful dress. His shoot sparked some furious debate among many on social media, some in support, some furiously opposed. It also ignited a movement on TikTok which saw male users posting videos of themselves in dresses and other traditionally feminine clothing and makeup under the ironic caption ‘bring back manly men’. Along with this, a trend involving men posting videos wearing maid outfits became popular as a form of resistance against the statement ‘boys can’t wear dresses’ which came about as a response to his vogue shoot.

Another important wing of fashion to consider is the clothing worn in the sporting world. When it comes to gendered issues and challenging sexist structures, the sporting world is a major player contributing to and enforcing mistreatment of women and girls. A moment which has stuck in my memory was when a Norwegian Beach Handball team decided to boycott the sexist uniform regulations insisting on female players to wear bikini bottoms and small revealing tops. Back in 2021, the whole team chose to wear shorts to a match which resulted in them being fined around 1500 euros. This small but significant fashion choice made waves, with singer Pink offering to cover the cost of the fine, and more importantly with there being an alteration to the uniform rules for female players, allowing them to wear shorts and tops that actually cover their stomachs. Taking into consideration the fact that male players are permitted to wear much less revealing uniforms, a change in the rules was certainly due to inspire more action in combatting the current gender inequalities in sport.

There are endless examples of times when fashion has been the driving force behind a movement which has influenced a community to participate in action for social change. These moments demonstrate the fact that fashion is powerful, and that one small stylistic decision, whether it be intentional or not can serve a much larger and significant cause beyond its initial purpose.

words by Elinor Pyman

Homophobia:

Marginalised from mainstream culture, the queer community has long been forced to find it’s home in the fine print of society. Alternative, unusual and often creative scenes have called to LGBT individuals, offering spaces for them to exist in their queer identities; allowing for them to safely explore different expressions of gender and sexuality. Subcultures like the punk scene are one such home, built on the backs of the LGBTQ+ community – they have served as great inspiration for legendary designers, such as the recently passed Vivienne Westwood.

Beyond this, many queer people have also found sanctuary within the fashion industry itself. Cisgender gay men frequently made their way up the ranks in this field, establishing themselves as leaders in their fields. Many fashion icons such as Giorgio Armani and Yves Saint Laurent lived their lives as openly gay men. It is therefore undeniable that the fashion industry as we know it today would not exist without the contribution of the queer community, who have continued to serve as inspirations for decades.

Not surprising then is how the world of fashion has used its platform to establish itself as a medium for protest and political change, especially with regards to homophobia –which impacts so many of the workers and beyond. One more modern example of this is the blurring of lines between women and men’s clothes, which have existed for centuries within a strict Western gender binary. To break down these barriers goes against what is expected of people living in a cishet patriarchal system. Notably many male celebrities have appeared in magazines and on the runway in skirts, traditionally meant for women, although the extent of how effective this by different individuals is contested. Take Harry Styles, his outfits may be a finger to the system, but they’re just not very good. Rapper Kid Cudi wore a dress on SNL that was gorgeous (in my opinion), and did so much of a better job than Styles previously has. I digress, the LGBT community has long been associated with campness and dressing in ways that are, a bit, out of the box – so to see famous men of all sexualities stand in solidarity with them, simply by just wearing a skirt or a dress, is a stand against homophobia.

words by Genevieve Gunn page design by Ananya Ranjit