How to be an Ally in Times

Two Iowa State students offer advice on how to be a good ally to the BLM movement and help to propel the movement forward via peaceful protests and social media. People of all races can be seen supporting the BLM movement both on social media and in person. Yory McGowan, junior studying animal ecology and David Carr offer guidance on how to join and promote the movement in a way that aligns with the values of BLM and remains respectful.

“I think social media is a big, big platform that you can get people aware [of the movement],” Carr said. “So allies posting is super cool, plus it educates their friends.”

Carr believes social media is a great way for allies to influence their friends and get a conversation started about the movement. He also thinks potential allies may be better reached by an ally of the movement because they set a good example worth following. A point both McGowan and Carr make about an ally’s social media posting is making sure what a person is posting is authentic. It is easy to sit behind a screen and claim these values, but the difference is being able to back up what one is posting about by how they go about their everyday lives.

“Just be about that life, don’t be afraid to get into uncomfortable conversations just because you aren’t the minority,” McGowan said. “Be open minded and be prepared for whatever people throw at you,” said McGowin.

Being educated on the movement is a crucial part of being a good ally. Taking the time to learn about the movement to know exactly what they are representing and knowing about the culture is important. Being able to have informed conversations with people is what keeps the movement alive and keeps it in the forefront of people’s minds.

Unfortunately, some people have begun claiming the title of a BLM ally due to its popularity rather than actually wanting to support the movement. Rather than recognizing the movement as something that impacts peoples lives and wellbeing, they treat it like a fun new trend.

“People used it to get more views or get more likes, they just saw it for the popularity aspect,” McGowan said. “It was trending so they thought they might as well follow the trend.” When comparing social media posting and in person protest support, Carr prefers people showing up in person.

“I would rather have someone be present because it is a lot harder to be there. It’s so easy to post a black square and be like ‘oh yeah I support that,”’ Carr said. Plus you’re out there with the people protesting, being there for them and being supportive,” said Carr.

Carr still believes that allies posting on social media is important to do in regards to the movement, however it is better to do it in addition to attending to support people in person during protests and events.

FASHION.

16 SUPPORTING BLACKOWNED BRANDS

20 WHITEWASHING OF THE MODEL INDUSTRY

SUPPORTING BLACK-OWNED BRANDS

By Jillian Gabby

In today’s cultural climate, racial injustice has been brought to the forefront after atrocious displays of police brutality. Fortunately, the Black Lives Matter movement has been doing a transformative job in bringing about change. After protesting, voting and speaking out on social media platforms, many wonder what else can be done to continue being an ally.

Supporting and buying from Black-owned companies is one way to continue the BLM momentum of change. Unfortunately, Black-owned brands have often received neither the acclaim they deserve nor are they given widespread attention. Hannah Oyibo, who enjoys shopping at local Black-owned brands like Body Butter Lady, spoke about why it is so important to “uplift these businesses instead of letting them crumble.”

“So many large corporations are run mainly by white people. A Black-owned business doesn’t generate as much business due to the fact that it is a black person who owns it,” Oyibo said. “Sadly, it’s looked on as not as high of quality or as great of a brand because society deems it to be that way”.

This negative societal view has been going on for quite some time. Anne Lowe, “Society’s best-kept secret”, was considered an elite dress designer of high society in the 1950s. Lowe made the dress Olivia de Havilland wore when she won an Oscar. However, Lowe was never mentioned and in fact, her name was not even put on the label of the dress. She also designed the wedding dress Jackie O. wore, but only received credit as a “colored designer.”

Patrick Kelly, designer of the ‘90s and known for his bright and bold designs, also made moves to put a stop to racism. Kelly reclaimed symbols of Black oppression, most notably the blackface, which he made into his iconic logo. Though investors asked him to stop the use of his logo and U.S. retailers refused to buy anything bearing his logo, Kelly was not deterred.

Kimora Lee Simmons wanted to give women a voice in the streetwear fashion industry and created Baby Phat, becoming the first Black woman to run a billion-dollar business. Today we have Rihanna running the game, dominating not only the music industry but all things beauty and fashion with her Fenty lines. These accomplished designers do not even begin to cover all of the Black-owned brands that have shaped fashion. Iowa State senior studying apparel merchandising and design, Byshawn Davis, a designer who has created lines, which you can find on his website, (byshawndavis.com), explained why it is so important to support Black-owned brands.

“It helps close the racial wealth gap that is so large in the United States at the moment,” Davis said. “It also helps local economies become stronger. It helps the unemployment rate with African Americans go down and helps celebrate black culture and services communities.”

Davis talked about how it can even hold other companies accountable who aren’t supporting Black communities.

“When you pick a Black-owned brand instead of someone like Gucci, who’s been in a lot of heat for offensive garments, you hold those brands accountable for their actions.”

Making the educated choice to shop and support Blackowned brands shifts the power. We as consumers have the decision to put our money into who we stand for and what we believe in.

Supporting Black-owned businesses doesn’t necessarily mean you need to go to great lengths. There are plenty of small, locally owned Black businesses who need support. It is often as simple as looking on Depop, or doing a little research and following Black-owned brands on Instagram or Twitter. “It’s really easy to Google it or talk to someone who is familiar with the area or you could contact the Black Student Association on campus,” said Davis.

Support can be interactive as well.“Repost things on your stories and share posts of Black-owned businesses. Show people what you buy from there, talk about it in a positive light just like you would any other place, or share how awesome it is to support Black-owned businesses by word of mouth,” said Oyibo.

Shop Black brands and spread the word so they aren’t the “best-kept secret,” but the best trending place to shop.

Showing support, in any way, is helpful in the fight to end

racism. As Davis states, “Any support is helpful support.”

From left to right: Model 1: Jeans and shirt: Portobello Road. Hoops: Nasty Gal. Model 2: Shirt and flannel: Portobello Road. Pants, shoes and jewelry: Model owned Model 3 Jean jacket: Comittee owned. Top: Portobello Road . Jeans and shoes: Model owned. Model 4 UNIF shirt: Comittee owned. Pants and shoes: Model owned.

WHITEWASHING OF THE MODEL

INDUSTRY

By Lauren Gabby

From left to right Model 1: Blazer: Banana Republic. Pants and cami: Wal Mart. Hoops: Forever 21. Model 2: Blazer: Banana Republic. Top and pants: Comittee owned. Necklace and hoops: Forever 21 With the Black Lives Matter movement becoming more prevalent than ever, large companies and organizations are starting to listen to and promote activists, as well as look at racism within their own organizations.

The fashion industry has had multiple issues with microaggression, racism and cultural appropriation, many that are still happening today. An area that has especially struggled throughout the years is the modeling industry and its lack of diversity and inclusion.

Magazines and runways are well-known for being whitewashed. Going back to the ‘90s and early-2000s, runways were full of white, thin models. While there were well-known Black supermodels such as Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks the industry was still predominantly white. Lexi Stumpf, a senior majoring in apparel design, said that she did notice the lack of diversity growing up.

“It would be very uncommon to find a representation of celebrities and icons that looked like me and if there were any, they would often play the role of the sidekick and never the lead,” Stumpf said. “You wouldn’t see their face on the front pages or covers. This made me feel like in order to be considered beautiful in society, I had to have more European features and that my natural features were wrong.”

Since then, Black models have been gaining more spotlight. Maria Borges was the first model to walk the Victoria Secret fashion show with her natural hair in 2015 and in 2016 Precious Lee was the first Black, plussize model to be featured in Vogue. Artistic Directors are finally realizing the importance of diversity in their shows, although critics claim this progress may be due to the current trend.

“As the BLM movement grows across media platforms, I have noticed a lot of fashion labels posting photos only of their black or diverse models,” Stumpf said. “I love to see this refreshing change, but my only wish is that it is here to stay and not just a temporary thing because it’s becoming “trending”. I hope to see a cultural shift in the fashion industry for hiring black women The modeling industry has also been tough on Black models. From not knowing how to properly style a Black woman’s hair to talking down to models, leaders have failed to do their jobs professionally and inclusively.

Troy Walls, a print and runway model through multiple agencies gave insight on what it is like to be a Black model in the industry.

“With racism in modeling, I haven’t experienced microaggression,” Walls said. “However, I have experienced ‘sorry we have someone just like you,’which means we already have a Black guy or minority male, and don’t need another. I’ve been modeling for six years and have only been paired with a white woman once for a job. It’s always a Black girl with a Black guy.”

This is further proof that although we have models of all colors, they are not treated equally and the fashion industry is still not where it should be.

“I think change needs to happen with people stepping outside their comfort zone on biracial media,” Walls said. “As well as becoming more aware of racial comments towards minority models.”

TFM FASHION.

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