Should I wear the Pink or the Black ?
Fashion as A Form of Protest
Picking out our outfit in the morning has become so non-chalant to us, and a norm so engraved in our brain that we usually do not give it a second thought. However, have we ever truly asked ourselves, why do we chose the things we chose and why do we wear the colors and styles we wear? More often than not, every single piece of our warddrobe is selectively chosen for a greater purpose than just “style”.
Throughout the duration of this course, we have learned about many different tactics that marginalized groups have used as forms of protest. We have seen things like physical protest marches, mixed medias, and activisit groups. When we began discussing wardrobe as a form of protest, it opened a whole new can of worms that I had not thought of. It quickly became evident, that everything I wear and many things other people wear, is with a purpose. Often times this purpose can be political or to make a statement about a political issue. It can also be a subconcious practice that we participate in.
In the reading “Immigrant Protest”, we were able to get a closer look at the powerful impact that protests actually hold, especially in a country that is largely inhabited by immigrants. As a Chicana with immigrant parents myself, during the time that this protest, “ a day without a Mexican”, occurred I was too young and naive to understand it but I remember my parents were following the news closely that day. It was not until that day, that non-marginalized groups of the country were able to put things into perspective and realize how essential Mexican immigrant workers are to the thriving of multiple economic sectors. Several industries like agriculture, childcare/housekeeping, and blue collar labor were severly affected by the absence of immigrants that day. Although I was too young to understand the protest then, more recently a similar Immigrant Protest also took place in February of 2017 and had similar effects. Protests serve at least as a reminder to the “fat cats” of this country, that immigrants literally build the economy. Without them, the economy would suffer tremendously. Experts from the Economic Policy Institute say that without immigrants, the economy would suffer tremendously in both low and high job sectors. It is with no doubt then, that having these facts will make politicians, like our current president, reconsider his policies. Protests have the power to shift agendas in a certain direction if organized properly and strategically.
The reason why I even mention this specific protest at all, is to understand the power of protest itself, the magnitude, and potential that they hold. Although there are protests occuring everday at different levels, this has been one of the most prominent ones in a long time. However, I want to shift gears into discussing an everyday type of protest that we all participate in at one point or another. A form of protest that we may often overlook and not even realize we are doing sometimes. The more micro agressive level type of protest, that is the protest in our fashion.
As mentioned earlier, our wardbrobe in itself is/can be our own way of protesting, which is why I believe that in that in that case, everything is political. When I wake up in the morning and decide that it is a day for dark burgundy lipstick, Nike shoes, a hoodie, and my hair in a bun, I know I will not be messed with that day. If I have work that day on my on campus job and I dress that way, I would be protesting their “professional attire” rule for the day. Simultaneously, giving off a tomboyish look, I would also be protesting gender norms since I would not be expressing heternormative femininity. Other types of fashion protest are more evident, such as wearing a “Fuck Donald Trump” shirt to express the opposition of his political views.
The colors and styles of clothes we wear every single day are calculated to the bone, based on the type of protest we want to convey that day. Growing up when going to family parties, I wanted to protest against my father’s machista ideals so bad. To do so, instead of dressing in a dress like he expected me to, I would wear jeans and sneakers to the family event even though I loved dresses I didn’t want to wear them because HE was telling me to. Now that I am in the prime of my 20’s and I actually have nights out on the town with friends, my dad is actually the one telling me to tone it down with the dresses because they have become “too short”. It’s so funny to see how the tables have turned. Although our relationship is healthy, I continue to buy and wear short dresses just to protest his wishes. In actuality, I know it is a protest I myself have with patriarchy and having any man, including my dad, tell me what to do, especially what to wear.
In the mainstream, we also are able to see how calculated fashion is. Stylists are constantly advising their influencers on what colors will appeal to their audiences better and what styles to stay away from. From sweaters to nail color and length, fashion has become such a huge part of protest. More recently, major fashion brands have took a huge cutback in profits based on their affiliation with our current president. The consumers will use their protest power by NOT buying from companies such as New Balance and Bloomingdale’s. In addition, clothes have also been a supporting element in other forms of existing protests. For example, in the BLM movement, there are scheduled dates to honor the fallen, where as a collective whole people who are in support of the movement are encouraged to wear all black for that day. More closely, the story of Trayvon Martin, people began to also wear hoodies like the one he wore at the time of his tragic death. This is done to protest the unfair stereotype that was put on him by George Zimmerman.
Fashion is a form of protest so powerful and also micro aggressive in its nature. It can be so symbolic that it makes the opposing team uncomfortable, but that is the beauty in it as well . Exercising this power is something that we need to take control of now more than ever. Often times we say we dont have “time” to make it out to the actual physical protests, but this is a form of protest that is accessible to everyone and just as powerful.
