LGBTQ: Does Fashion & Beauty Support The Queers?
“The only queer people are those who don’t love anybody”- Rita Mae Brown
Inclusivity has always been the motto of the fashion industry. Be it size, color, Pride or any other concept built by the society, fashion industry and beauty industry have always had a mind of its own. The Indian fashion designers, global makeup industry, international fashion brands and organizations representing fashion and beauty do not know to discriminate instead they purely judge you on the basis of your talent.
Queers have had a special place in the fashion and beauty industry, be it the famous Indian fashion designer Wendell Rodricks or the renowned Rohit Bal and Anwesh Sahoo a fashion illustrator and model, they all are well celebrated for their talent and work.
An umbrella term for those whose sexual desires don’t align with the societal concept of love, marriage, and unanimity, queers are termed as a minority whose sexual preferences are non-heterosexual.
Who are queers?
In very simple terms, gays, lesbians, transgender, bisexual, and cisgender are the people who are considered to be a part of the queer umbrella. They either have different sexual preferences or are the ones who have fought through to create an identity as another gender.
Is Being Queer a Crime?
Historically, queers have been for as long as the Roman Empire where gays were a part of the society and there was no question of acceptance or non-acceptance, as it was considered to be normal. The sacred and ancient text of India- ‘Kamasutra’ has a whole chapter dedicated to homosexuality, considering it to be a form of love and sexual pleasure.
Homosexuality was not well-thought-out as inferior or queer in the Indian subcontinent until it was colonized by the British. Even across Europe gender and preference diversity have prevailed since ancient times, it was only conquests, migrations, and influence of religion that started to see queers as against the set dogma.
Legally, being queer and getting involved in a same-sex relationship has recently evolved gaining a broader perspective in many legal books. It was just in 2017, that Indian Supreme Court passed the LGBTQ community to live with freedom of expression protecting their rights and status under the Right to Privacy Act. In 2015 homosexuality became legal in America, across all its states.
2000 was marked as the year when EU states opened its legal doors for the LGBT community making it normal in the society and banning any discrimination on the basis of the same. Australia charts the highest scores in being open and progressive; it repealed all the anti-homosexuality laws between 1975- 1997, making it a freely expressive continent for the LGBTQ community.
In the Middle East, 10 out of 18 countries perceive homosexuality as a sin and crime. There are strict laws pertaining to same-sex love and sexual relations.
Homo Sexuality or the society along with the acceptance of varied preferences of people depends upon the history, culture, and religion first followed by the legal system. Many even though living in nations where law supports LGBTQ or queers face discrimination on an everyday basis from the people.
Does The Global Fashion Industry Support Queers?
It is common thinking prevalent in the minds of many-
Fashion designer! Must be gay! This brings us to think whether or not the fashion industry has been supportive of LGBTQ or queer for a long time?
Fashion has always been an expression of freedom and uniqueness. There is room for all sorts of creativity. Here talent, connections, and glam are valued more than the societal and religious disposition. It always sees the difference as unique and supports progressive thoughts whether it is through mixing cultures in outfits or standing for social causes like LGBTQ rights, Queers, and Pride Parades (outdoor event celebrating lesbian, gay, Tran’s gender, bisexual, queers.). Many fashion designers who have defined the latest fashion for the world were gays but could not speak of it openly due to societal pressure like Christian Dior and Cristobal Balenciaga. But with time, fashion changed into an industry where reforms would be supported and social acts that would take the society and its people forward would be initiated. Read more for click link.
Source: https://www.iknockfashion.com/lgbtq-does-fashion-beauty-support-the-queers/
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