There are moments when time seems to freeze. Where eyes track to one place and whispers are the only audible sound. Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez ascending the steps of the Met Gala in a dress with the words “Tax the Rich” in bold letters, fashion designer Connor Ives closing his show at London Fashion Week wearing a t-shirt with the words “Protect the Dolls” to protest the treatment of the transgender community in the United States; these are the moments where we see what fashion really is, something deeper than designer labels and price tags, a powerful force that can be a protest.
However, this use of fashion is not a new phenomenon. It is a practice that dates back centuries; garments that are now a part of modern life were born in a moment of protest. Pants were used as a tool for the suffragettes to protest gender inequality and campaign for women’s voting rights. Similarly, the purse, a staple of the modern wardrobe, was a symbol of resistance during the French revolution. Prior to the revolution, the sans-culottes (those without breeches), a revolutionary group rebuked the Marie Antionette style gowns of pre-revolution France in protest of the French regime. With the dissolution of these large dresses, there was a need for a place to store everyday items, leading to the invention of the purse.
Yet fashion can protest more than politics. It can be used to protest the fashion industry itself, namely against the consumerist culture that has become a large part of modern society with the rise of fast fashion.
“Now fashion can definitely be a commentary on consumerism and capitalism,” said Olivia Silva, humanities department Faculty. “If I go to any thrift store, I feel like I’ll see something that I saw that online maybe a week ago.”
With the growing popularity of brands like Shein and Temu, and the virality of dupe culture, there is a quicker turnaround between when something is bought new and thrown out. Intentionally buying and wearing secondhand clothing can, whether intended or not, be a form of protest or commentary around consumerism. This connects to the theme of the inherent protest that is involved with fashion, whether that is an overt symbol that spells out a person’s beliefs, or a subtle and nuanced connection to where the clothes themselves are coming from.
In this era of growing technological discovery, especially regarding artificial intelligence, artistic expression itself is coming into question. With AI tools growing sophisticated enough to create “art” of their own, there is a bigger emphasis on the importance of original work. This again calls into question the inherent protest that comes with fashion. In a time increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, is wearing original work in itself a protest against the ‘art’ that AI creates?
“In an age of rising AI, with the gradual loss of visible human imperfections, preserving something that is more human is more urgent,” Cindy Ren (‘27) said. “And wearing original designs and things that have more humanity to it, things that feel more personal and handcrafted, can be sort of like protest itself.”
So why is fashion itself used in this way? Kyle Smith (‘12), the NFL’s Fashion Editor, thinks that fashion is used like this because it has the power and reach to. Because fashion can and will intersect with anything, whether that is culture, media, or politics.
“Fashion is a mirror for society to reflect upon itself, and it touches everything. Fashion touches culture. It touches politics. It touches economics and science and music and movies and sports,” Mr. Smith said. “It isn’t something that should be looked at in a vacuum, because it does touch everything.”
Fashion is also a form of individuality and self-expression and can be a voice for those without one. Akin to this use, it gives a voice to beliefs that one might not want to say. Fashion gives inward objections and feelings of unrest place to be expressed and shown to the world.
“If you don’t have the opportunity to speak, or if you’ve been silenced or don’t want to speak, your clothing can speak for you,” Mr. Smith said.
Although picking out your outfit for the day may seem like a simple routine, the clothes themselves carry a deeper meaning. Styles that came from revolutions and movements still lie in our closets today. Pieces that were born from brave acts of defiance and standing up for what is right. Fashion is not just the clothes you throw on as you rush to class; it reflects the tension of a moment and a protest against that tension. So next time you pick out an outfit for the day, think to yourself: what do you stand for? And what do you stand against?
