Sophia Lisaius: Blog Three

This weekend was my birthday. This year I broke a lot of traditions, which was sad in some ways, but also very positive because it was for the better. Usually every year I buy a birthday outfit. This outfit relates to what my plans are for that day, such as lunch with friends, a night out, or a hike but no matter what there is always a new piece of clothing in the group. This Saturday I didn't have that, and I wore things that I had worn before. Crazy, I know. 

Thinking about wearing the same thing twice has never been an issue for me. I like my clothing and I try to buy it with quality, so that the number on the price tag, is the number of wears I have to get it. But why is it that I have to have a new outfit when something special happens? This is what surprised me, and with that one thought I broke out a dress that I bought four years ago, and it needed a few more wears to get to its price tag. 

On my birthday I didn't feel dragged down by the clothing that I had worn before, and I still felt great in it. I thought it matched the occasion perfectly, and I like that I could put a dress that was designed for a fancier event to use in a more relaxed environment. It was fun. 

After doing the reading for the class this week I couldn't help but get upset. I am a white female, being female is my only social "flaw" and even so, I am privileged in the sense that I have never been thought of as a minority. Yes my ancestors came to The United States and had to work horrible conditions, but it was people before them that who helped create a horrible standard for many people in the world. When reading the “Abercrombie and Fitch Settles $40 Million Discrimination Suit.” I was pretty bummed. I never grew up wearing that clothing because my mom didn't like the idea, and the stores always gave me a headache. I liked the moose on the sweaters, but didn't get how one small logo could do so much damage. 

Abercrombie and Fitch is for white people. This is now known throughout the world, yet they aren't even for all white people. If you are curvy, are female with muscle mass, or even broad shoulders you should not wear this clothing. I looked up pictures of the store openings, and its always centered around two ab ridden guys, with small white girls clutching his body. Why would a guy allow that? Is that every guys goal? I felt bad, because now every guy in the world had to look like that, and the sad thing is that when you look like that, you aren't actually building strength and you aren't as strong as people think you are. 

When doing a google search, there is always now a non-white person in the photo. I thought this was good to see, yet there was always a white person in every photo, because just in case you missed it, white people should wear Abercrombie and Fitch.

This class is really starting to open my eyes to things I didn't know about. It is startling how obvious things are, but they are buried deep beneath the efforts to oppress and diminish the livelihood of certain people. I know what it feels like to not fit into clothing, but I've never known what it was like to not be accepted in certain clothing.