Centuries ago we were once referred to as naked savages by those that discovered our lands. Fast forward to today; the buzz word - “naked is the most sustainable fashion choice” – An Indigenous Woman
The right side of the wrong side or the wrong side of the right side - of history?
In preparing to post a brief introduction to this write-up, a Twitter post from UNESCO unexpectedly popped up on my Twitter feed that read;
“Those who forget or deny their history are indeed doomed to repeat it”
It was the international day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.
We set aside a day to memorialize the transatlantic slave trade, but have we indeed “denied or forgotten history doomed to repeat it”; seeing how the systematic oppression of the past is still prevalent in society today?
The core of enslavement during the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Colonial rule of the 15th Century involved the subjugation of black, brown, and indigenous people, display of dominant power dynamics, violence, exploitation of natural resources, environmental degradation, and mental and physical servitude.
These experiences have been recycled right into the 21st century as we continue to witness the persistent reality of institutionalized and systematic racism, discrimination, and unbalanced power dynamics through unequal representations of black, brown, and indigenous people and contemporary forms of modern-day slavery.
Notably visible in the textile and fashion industry:
1. Power Dynamics
2. Extraction of Natural Resources / Waste Colonialism
3. Exploitation of Labor
4. Culture
Power Dynamics:
Our understanding of colonialism is often limited to simple ideas about what we think colonialism looked like in the past. These ideas impede our ability to identify the complex ways that colonialism shaped and continues to shape the uneven power structures of the 21st century – Duress by Anna Laura Stoler
I want us to take a brief look into the history; of international trade routes, the exploitation of labor and natural resources, the collision of cultures and its repercussions during the colonial era, and how these have evolved into the 21st century. Paying particular attention to the fashion and textile industry and how it is built on the same exploitative colonial power structures that have evolved into the 21st century. Examining the power dynamics, trading patterns (resources & labor), and global market attitude (of Eurocentric culture and beauty standards) between and within the Global North and that of the Global South.
Extraction / Waste Colonialism:
“Those who work the cotton field still work the cotton field –
same systematic culture of oppression different era.”
During the Industrial Revolution, new territories were treated as resource hotbeds by colonialists, with an unlimited supply of labor and natural resources to exploit. Raw materials such as cotton, Tabaco, gold, silver, and oil along with forced labor were traded.
The introduction of commercial exploitation, overconsumption, and unsustainable ways of living had repercussions:
Illegal dispossession of people.
Forced adaption to new ways of living (often resulting in the disruption of a sustainable way of life, through circularity and regenerative practices of Indigenous people).
Environmental degradation.
Human rights violation – illegal dispossession, inequality, slavery, exclusion, racism, and discrimination.
Poverty.
The legacies of colonialism are quite apparent in the Textile and Fashion industry:
Resources are still being extracted and cheap or forced labor is exploited (by Global North); from countries (mostly former colonies) of the Global South.
Raw Materials such as cotton are being extracted using environmentally degrading processes like industrial agriculture (i.e. synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, monocultures, genetically-modified seeds, etc.).
Forced labor is still being used to work the cotton fields - multi-national fashion brands and conglomerates (of the Global North) continue to take advantage of and profit off vulnerable workforce mostly women of color in countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam, India, and Ethiopia[1]
The term waste colonialism also gains traction as the Global North uses the Global South as a dumping ground for excess textile waste. As we see in this report on Ghana, where excess charitable donations of used clothing now litter the nation’s ocean and landfill.
The exploitation of Labor:
The Slave Trade and other forms of Labor exploitation were at their peak during the colonial era. Laborers were traded as commodities to generate wealth for the imperial states. Slavery was more than physical servitude, it influenced every aspect of colonial thought and culture. It gave an exaggerated sense of status between the free and the unfree, creating division and meaning to what is deemed as a superior culture to that of the minorities.
The superior colonial ideologies and thought culture have long survived its predecessors and remained visibly intact throughout decades dividing societies with its own prejudices and biases.
Whilst former imperial states have abolished slavery, declaring it illegal and we have seen significant shifts with the implementation of laws, conventions, and treaties on rights and various movements calling for diversity, inclusion, and equity, the unfortunate reality is; that the systematic oppressions of the past have evolved and taken on a life of its own.
Contemporary modern-day forms of slavery have resurfaced under various guises, one of them being human and sex trafficking, and child exploitation.
An article published in Borden Magazine stated the following:
Trafficking is the third-largest criminal industry in the world.
Earning an estimated 40 billion dollars a year.
Clothing manufacturing is one of the sectors with the most trafficking as the lack of transparency about where clothing is made allows underground networks of trafficking to continue.
Examples:
In 2012, in Uzbekistan, Central Asia, the government forced more than 1 million people to pick cotton, including children.
In India, fake apprenticeship set-ups mislead people into working 10 to 12 hours per day in poor conditions for very little pay.
In Cambodia, the government established a Specialized Economic Zone that suspends labor laws and human rights, increasing profit margins and attracting foreign entities’ interest. The textile industry is one of the most managed industries, but these regulations do not extend to the workers. The tiered production system makes secrecy thrive as the unknown suppliers of materials, threads, and labor create the perfect environment for exploitation and trafficking.
Workers in Global South suffer the most for the benefit of the billion-dollar business of the Global North. Outsourcing of cheap labor often results in the exploitation of the most vulnerable workforce including children and women of color by the Garment Industry.
Women of color bear double burdens of multi discrimination of gender and ethnic status, working in modern-day slavery conditions, unfair wages, and at the receiving end of gender-based and sexual violence. ILO also reported about 170 million children are engaged in child labor making textile garments to satisfy the demands of consumers in Europe, the US, and beyond.[2]
Many of those that work for the fashion supply chain come from improvised rural areas of countries such as India and Bangladesh.
Culture:
Museums are fascinating as they contain such rich history. I am particularly drawn to the attires displayed at museum galleries. I am reminded of how clothing attires are woven into our history and heritage. They convey their own definition of beauty, pride, sensuality, gender, marital status, birth rank, a political gesture, and of course the shift in power dynamics when two cultures collide.
Colonialism is an era that witnessed the collision of cultures and the rearrangement of status, practices, lifestyle, and ideologies as the inferior/weaker culture submitted to the more domineering one.
Eurocentric standards were imposed, in terms of beauty standards, and clothing status-based distinction was established.
The beauty standards in the eyes of the colonizer.
A study entitled “Eurocentrism in Ethnic Dress” from the University Digital Conservancy found that in the Age of Exploration, “when Westerners and non-Westerners were depicted together, [foreign] clothing suggested Western dominance and implied justification for this dominance.”
Classical fashion theory confirms these biases, classifying dress within an elite system that suggests a dichotomy between Western fashion and dress from anywhere else in the world [3]
This evolved into the 21st century as standardization of fashion/culture stemming from global market attitudes heavily influenced by Eurocentric culture dominates the industry and projects the same indifference towards the existence of other diverse cultural identities.
However, fashion like any type of art and/or artistic expression cannot be contained to one culture or (beauty) standard. It evolves and is transformed by the artist stitching together the tapestry of beauty, conveying his/her own message whether it be political, environmental, or a revolt against the typical prejudices.
I love how this is portrayed in an article published with the Guardian on Black Ivy, A Revolt in Style - how attires were worn as a battledress a symbolic amour worn in the non-violent pursuit of fundamental change. Making society treat them differently meant making the mainstream see them differently first.
The Eurocentric biases are not pervasive because they are true – they are pervasive because they remain largely unchallenged [4]
How is it that these biases and prejudices have remained unchallenged?
For the simple fact that we deny, forgot, or do not understand history enough to notice how the repetitive patterns of the past have slipped by us unnoticed and unchallenged.
We continue to fight against the gremlins of - institutionalized and systematic racism, discrimination, and unbalanced power dynamics through unequal representations of black, brown, and indigenous people and contemporary forms of modern-day slavery, environmental degradation, and climate change.
I wonder;
I Imagine;
What happens if we emancipate ourselves from mental slavery?
Learn
Act
Implement
I am hopeful;
We become the change that we seek.
Decolonizing mindsets
Detoxing the Earth
Much Love
Founder
References:
[1] Conscious Life in Style
[2] ILO report
[3] Marina Starck - https://www.attiremedia.com/popular-brands/diversity-and-inclusion-in-fashion-is-the-fashion-industry-too-eurocentric
[4] Marina Starck - https://www.attiremedia.com/popular-brands/diversity-and-inclusion-in-fashion-is-the-fashion-industry-too-eurocentric
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