As a person who loves fashion and is very interested in politics, the line can sometimes gets a little fuzzy. When I read that designers such as: Marc Jacobs, Tom Ford, Phillip Lim, Zac Posen and many more, refused to dress the First Lady, Melania Trump, I was a little taken back. Shouldn’t anyone be honored to dress the First Lady of the United States of America? I don’t think it should matter whether you are a Republican or a Democrat. As an American, I felt that the designers who spoke out against dressing the First Lady, should have considered all their clients before making such a statement.
When I found out that various designers including, Ralph Lauren and Dolce and Gabbana, were willing to dress the First Lady, I was very pleased and proud to be a fan. I do not think that Melania should be blacklisted for her husbands politics, but some designers disagree.
Ivanka Trump, the daughter of President Trump, created her fashion label and had it in major departments stores like Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Dillards. After she announced that she would be working alongside her father, she received a lot of backlash for not disconnecting herself from her label. Herself being an Independent, I do not think that she should have received so much criticism and people saying that they will never buy from her line again. Some department stores were forced to drop her line due to people boycotting them until they did so.
In the Fashion industry, politics has been a recurring theme thanks to iconic designers such as Katherine Hamnett, Jean Paul Gaultier, Karl Lagerfeld and more. This season designers incorporated white bandanas in their fashion shows to symbolize acceptance and inclusivity. This is a positive message that people enjoy.
I believe the line gets blurred with fashion and politics because when do you really know once the line was crossed? A designer might be insulting thousands of customers, but maybe creating new customers who want to buy.
Sources:
aliquintero.com 