It’s interesting how we choose to see, or not see, sexism in fashion. We’re not talking about designers’ questionable sizing scales or the blatantly misogynist ad campaigns, but rather the subtle gender inequality that’s found within the backbones of the industry. From models to designers to journalists to stylists—it seems that women are still grossly misrepresented and underappreciated even an in industry that is so strongly associated with them. Emma Watson, a UN Women Global Goodwill Ambassador and supporter of HeForSHe, and Vogue UK have partnered together to talk about the gender inequality in the industry and we definitely think it’s something you should hear.
Inviting major names like Bella Freud, Stella McCartney, Johnathan Saunders and Erdem Moralioglu to discuss the issue, Vouge UK’s latest video show’s that even those in the industry can be blind to the sexism that’s taking place. “It's very easy to slip into the mind-set where you feel like you're working in a very liberal environment where men and women are treated equally, where there doesn't seem to be any kind of gender preferential treatment,” Saunders said. “So it's easy to kind of neglect it being an issue.”
The designers agreed that many big changes needed to be addressed across the board, and surprisingly maternity leave was one of the industry’s major internal issues. “I think there should be better maternity leave for men as well as women, and that would make it less of a thing that you 'do as a woman because somehow, women really aren’t serious about their work,’” Freud explained. “Which is an incredibly unfair and warped approach.”
Of course, the discussion couldn’t avoid touching on issues of self-esteem and the industry’s way of portraying women. “I think the fashion industry has a very big role to play. It has a huge voice and the voice can be adapted, it’s about time it did change,” McCartney said. “We need to give a better message to women of all ages, all sizes and all nationalities. We need to allow women to feel comfortable in who they are.” We totally agree.
