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This is What a Feminist Looks Like, isn't it?
Other | Thursday 6th November 2014 | Izaradz
The fusion of fashion and Feminism has certainly been gathering media interest in the past few months. Cara Delevigne posted a controversial picture on her Instagram and the Climate Change rally in London of a girl holding a banner quoting “WOMEN: First Affected, Last Consulted”. The recent ‘FCK H8’ video on YouTube, featuring young girls swearing to shock us into feminist awareness, was also a controversial hit.
The movement of advocating women’s rights and bringing Feminism to the forefront of discussion continues, yet distorts, with Elle Magazine’s most recent project with the Fawcett Society and fashion retailer Whistles. Their “This is What a Feminist Looks Like” t-shirts, costing £45 per piece, with proceeds going to The Fawcett Society, have been worn by politicians such as Nick Clegg and Ed Miliband, as well as actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddelston and singer Tinie Tempah.
However, a recent investigation by The Mail on Sunday suggested that the t-shirts are in fact the product of sweatshops and exploitation of labour. It has been suggested that female workers who manufacture these products in factories in Mauritius are paid no more than 62 pence an hour, making up a miserable quarter of the national minimum wage. Furthermore, they are lodged in rooms with some 15 other employees and are forced to sign a four-year contract, which also commits them to working a 45-hour week.
Both Whistles and The Fawcett Society have released statements emphasizing the importance of ethical and environmentally friendly production. The results of their own investigation into the claims have now been announced. Evidence has been supplied which counters the claims made by The Mail on Sunday. Indeed, the workers are assigned a 45-hour week, but they are paid according to national standards and are compensated for any overtime. Investigators also emphasized the favourable working conditions of the so-called ‘sweatshop’ and the reassuring presence of trade union activity.
So Elle, Whistles and the Fawcett Society are off the hook. Nevertheless, next time we buy a t-shirt bearing a statement that we support, we should take a minute to consider where it came from.
by Izy Radwanska Zhang
