Racism and the Fashion Industry

“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”- Maya AngelouIn the past few weeks, one issue is shaking up the whole world - racism. The murder of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020, an African-American man, by a white police officer triggered a strong rise in the #blacklivesmatter movement with hundreds of thousands of protesters against police brutality and systematic racism across the world.In the context of that, and due to the so many ways in which racism is embedded in the fashion system as well, there was simply no was not to talk about it.In this episode, we address 4 questions:Why #blacklivesmatter is the right phrase?Why now?What does this have to do with the fashion industry?What can I do to help?Sources used:US prisons statisticsLocked-In Profits: The U.S. Prison Industry, By the NumbersRacism is at the heart of fast fashion – it's time for changePrimark and Matalan among retailers allegedly cancelling £2.4bn orders in ‘catastrophic’ move for BangladeshDoes fashion have a cultural appropriation problem?Reformation founder apologises for workplace racismOn Racism, Fashion Must Do More Than Speak Uphttps://www.instagram.com/tv/CBF8XgFoalS/?igshid=1dx5pt3xnrxmfA few ideas on what to do:SupportPayUp movementThe Fashion RevolutionFair Wear FoundationBlack Lives MatterAmadeu Antonio StiftungSign petitions and donate to causes that are making a difference:Make White Privilege and Systemic Racism a Compulsory Part of the British Education CourseThe 15% PledgeReadHow to Be an Antiracist, Ibram X KendiWhy I'm No Longer Talking to White People about Race, Reni Eddo-LodgeWhite Fragility, Robin DiAngeloWhite Tears/Brown Scars: How White Feminism Betrays Women of Color, Ruby HamadAnd moreListenDismantling White Fragility on SpotifyEXIT RACISM, Tupoka Ougette on Spotify“Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race” — a Guardian podcast episodePod Save The People, a podcastWatch13th on NetflixWhen They Say US on NetflixTime: The Kalief Browder Story on NetflixDear White People on Netflix and Amazon Prime