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Throughout the history of fashion, there have been many instances of political messages, being woven in to fashion statements. From the hippie movement in the 1960s, to the 1990s and the grunge scene, fashion has always been a way to express oneself and their beliefs through clothing.

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Clothing has also been a way to protest. In the 1969 trial, Tinker V Des Moines, the Supreme Court upheld that students were able to wear armbands that expressed their objection of the Vietnam War. This was a landmark case for freedom of speech, even through something as simple as clothing.

The politicization of clothing it’s nothing new, however, it is always changing to reflect the modern times. Recently, more explicit statements, written across clothing, have become popular.

Here are three examples of recent political clothing statements you may or may not have seen: 

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In 2013, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City unveiled a new collection in the Costume Institution titled “Punk: Chaos to Couture.” This collection looked at punk culture’s influence on high fashion, such as evaluating the the do-it-yourself nature of punk fashion and its influence on a greater high fashion trends. One prominent feature of clothing in punk culture was political statements on clothing. As depicted in this picture, it was common to see popular protest slogans were written across T-shirts.

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In 2021, US, House of Representatives member, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, attended the met gala, wearing a custom Brother Vellies gown depicting the words “Tax the Rich.” The Met Gala is an annual fundraiser hosted by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is attended by influential celebrities and media figures. Ocasio-Cortez, who has been vocal about tax reform in Congress, took the opportunity to make a blunt political statement on her dress. While many applauded, AOC’s statement, others thought it was distasteful as AOC herself was privileged for being able to have a sponsor pay the hefty ticket price for her attendance at the event.

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André 3000 is an American rapper and singer who is well known for his political closing statements. In 2020, at the height of a Black Lives Matter movement, André 3000 released a collection highlighting important issues of the Black Lives Matter movement. One such example can be seen in this image, where he dons a shirt with the words “across cultures, darker people suffer the most, why?” The shirts were only available to purchase for a very limited time, and all the proceeds went towards the Movement for Black Lives organization.

 

Politicization of fashion can be subtle, like the armbands during the Vietnam war, or explicit, like the shirt donned by André 3000. Fashion and politics have always been connected and clothing has always been a way of expressing one’s beliefs and identity. Are there any ways you show your own values or beliefs with clothing?

 

 

References:

https://pitchfork.com/news/andre-3000-releases-t-shirts-to-benefit-the-movement-for-black-lives/

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/15/style/aoc-met-gala-dress

https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2013/punk

https://www.oyez.org/cases/1968/21