CHALA JAMISON

BUF 1101

RESEARCH PAPER

RESEARCH PAPER

Abstract:  There are many issues in the fashion industry, some of the most important issues include discrimination of plus sized women and racial discrimination.  Plus size women and models have historically been excluded from the fashion industry and recently luxury companies have been accused of using blackface . These types of discrimination has impacted the fashion industry and many luxury companies have participated in racism. All women and people of diverse backgrounds and races should feel included and comfortable when they see designs and designers promoting products. 

In the past century there have been many issues in the fashion industry, some of the most important issues include discrimination of plus sized women and racial discrimination. The most common issues for women has been the size of the clothing. For many years women have not been able to feel confident in their own fashion and it’s because no one took plus size women and made them models. It was always slim men and women that were given modeling opportunities. Imagine you see an amazing outfit, great color and fabric and you want for your upcoming event. You are  also willing to pay hundreds of  dollars for the outfit, however the cashier tells you that they don’t make your size. That’s outrageous and shouldn’t happen. The companies should not be suggesting that customers have to lose a few pounds before they can wear their clothing! 

 Consumers should not have to lose weight before they can wear the outfit that makes them feel good about their self esteem. Plus-size women represent 68% of shoppers, yet we’re often only a small percentage of the people in positions in fashion. The companies in the fashion industry have to make more sizes and expand advertising for apparel. The models are often slim even when there are items for plus size customers.  Also, when an ad shows only one plus size person this is showing that there is not a collection for plus size people or it is a small selection . This makes companies lose potential sales when they don’t have plus size models in commercials. The customer will automatically think the company doesn’t offer much for plus size people.  It should be a variety of sizes in advertisements.  

                      The majority of decision makers are still straight-size or not plus sized. Many retailers want to dip their toe into plus, but they only offer certain styles they deem ‘plus-appropriate.’ I hear things like, ‘A plus woman wouldn’t want something like this.’ There’s no question that extending sizes isn’t as simple as scaling up existing patterns. Getting into larger size ranges often means incurring extra expenses, like hiring another model, creating more patterns and using more fabric. Luxury items should carry plus sizes for the plus size communities. ‘Gucci, as just one especially prosperous example, saw a 49 percent sales growth in the first fiscal quarter of 2018 alone, worth some $2.2 million. ‘There is a growing amount of would-be partners willing to facilitate the expansion into plus sizes .  So why luxury companies expand the plus size collection ? Luxury companies believe being overweight is not healthy, so it doesn’t matter how much of the population is fat , it’s not a healthy image . Luxury companies rather lose money then reach out to plus size community. This forces plus size customers to shop elsewhere for luxury ready to wear items. It’s time for plus-size inclusion to become a true movement at the luxury fashion level. If designers and brands could offer larger size ranges, bigger sample sizes could be made available for editorial shoots with plus-size models or celebrities and runways could become more representative if retailers would stock those sizes, they’d be available. Representation matters. 

Luxury companies have also shown obvious racism. Racism is the belief that a particular race is superior or inferior to another, that a person’s social and moral traits are predetermined by his or her inborn biological characteristics. Racial separatism is the belief, most of the time based on racism, that different races should remain segregated and apart from one another. Many African Americans men and women had to fight for their lives. On a daily basis African Americans lives were taken away by white Americans. This is a very sensitive topic because all African Americans have ancestors that experienced slavery. Racism affects people on a personal level and pulls an emotional trigger of anger and sadness. Each year African American children must learn about racism in school. 

Many luxury companies have been accused of marketing items that use or resemble blackface. Blackface began when white actors would paint their faces black and leave large outlines around the mouth to imitate having full lips. In the 1800s, blackface was heavily prominent in the form of minstrel shows. To be clear, this was not a form of flattery. It was very clearly done to mock black culture and to portray black people as inferior or unintellectual. Shows shaped the nation’s views on race and reinforced white superiority well after the abolition of slavery.

Although the blackface minstrel shows gradually disappeared, this form of entertainment had a major influence over vaudeville, radio, television, motion picture, and world music industries of the 20th and 21st centuries. And reports of politicians and college students dressing up in blackface are a regular part of the news.  It is a very personal topic because of white supremacy, a black American is likely to get a 20% longer sentence for the same offense as a white American. Black homeownership rates are way behind white homeownership rates, and black poverty rates are also much higher than white poverty rates. So let’s take a look at the turtleneck in question. We can begin to see why it would be so hurtful to so many people. This topic is very emotional because these are current issues that did not happen when slavery occurred but are happening in this century. Luxury companies still do it now, and a simple apology does not fix this.

The fashion industry’s involvement with racism has included brands such as H&M, Moncler, and Gucci. In Jan 2018, H&M releases an ad featuring a black child modeling a green hooded sweatshirt emblazoned with the phrase “coolest monkey in the jungle.” Social media users vowed to stop shopping at the retail giant while others blasted marketing executives for approving the image despite the ugly history of using “monkey” as an ethnic slur against black people.  H&M selling a hoodie that says “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle” is insult enough. They went on to ensure their message was clear when they put the hoodie on a little Black boy in order to advertise it. There is no excuse for H&M to continue to trade in that imagery in our current times, there’s a long history of Black people being compared to monkeys in order to dehumanize us. H&M must show a commitment to diversity. Luxury brand Moncler has also participated in this type of racism and used black face in their fashion line. Moncler released a line that some say resembles the harmful Sambo stereotype. Sambo was a term used to describe black people during slavery. In 1899, a children’s book, “The Story of Little Black Sambo,” helped solidify the derogatory caricature of dark-skinned children. The resemblance of some of high fashion’s hot items is striking, and this image didn’t stop with the drawings. After one company in the fashion industry was racist it manifested and people began to notice other examples. Gucci was being accused of profiting from blackface. “Katy Perry released shoes that resemble blackface. Prada produced this black monkey with exaggerated red lips. 

Black face is impacting the fashion industry and many luxury companies have participated in racism. White Americans who are in charge of these companies allow the racist products to be made. This has made some companies more socially aware and makes them try to improve when there is a backlash (called out) or if they get negative media. Now, more people will share their feelings on social media and with their peers. The black face has impacted the fashion industry in a negative way and now consumers know that there may be a hidden message of racism.

Consumers have been impacted by racism and many people have not been shopping in these stores due to the fact that they are indeed racist. It also makes people uncomfortable and conflicted about buying from certain brands. They may like the items but not like what the brand or designer stands for. This affects consumers because they are not able to see themselves in a products image. People may feel that these products may not fit their body or race. It can seem that fashion is leaving one race out and separating or isolating one group of people.

All women and people of diverse backgrounds and races should feel included and comfortable when they see designs and designers promoting products. Women of varying shapes and sizes and women of all races should feel that the product could be for them. They shouldn’t feel like a product is not for them, for example if they don’t have abs or other “attractive” features. Designers should diversify their products and their consumer marketing otherwise they will eventually lose consumers. 

 Citation

Kennedy, K., & Molen, G. R. (Producers), & Spielberg, S. (Director). (2017).Fashion industry [author ]. USA: Universal

Cimarel ,L., & simons ,P. S(Producers), & Spielberg, S. (Director). (2018).H&M [rascim].Europe : U.K.