As a Brit, my time at St Andrews has been my first encounter with so many Americans. It’s hard to leave the house without hearing that familiar drawl which for so long had been confined to movies or TV shows that I was watching. Now, not only is the accent all around but so is the culture. For the first time, I’ve experienced Thanksgiving, learnt about school district drama and, most importantly, discovered that Crumbl cookies are definitely worth the hype.
American culture is entrenched in the fabric of what it means to be a St Andrews student. And, at such a tense moment in American history, St Andrews has too felt the division. Everyone was hyper-aware that last week was election week, conversations I overheard in the queue at Rectors involved people discussing mailing in their ballots, the words ‘swing states’ were talked about as much as Christmas ball ticket drops. It felt as if we were in America.
Credit: Instagram/@kaiagerber.
What was surprising perhaps most of all, was that what people were wearing last week reflected this exact situation. It is not new news to point out that fashion and politics are intertwined, take the 1970s movement of ‘Summer of Love' the move to boho fashion in the wake of the Vietnam war. The loss of such extravagant female hair styles following the World Wars, even the theory that A-list actors stop wearing diamond necklaces on red carpets when the world is in a recession.
Usually, these fashion trends take years to arrive, they're built-on patterns and influences far and wide. Last week, however, I noticed how quickly political fashion had made its mark in St Andrews.
At 09.00 on the day of the election, I was walking to the physics building when I caught sight of a bright green pin badge on a girl's tote bag. ‘Kamala,' it said, in the classic Charli XCX Brat font. It was big, and it was bold. Without so much as saying a word, this girl’s tote said so much. Later that day, I passed someone on the street with a t-shirt saying, “We Can Never Go Back”. It was clear that the day’s fashion choices were almost armour. It was a chance to wear your heart on your sleeve and make your opinion known.
Credit: Instagram/@itsmeleighton.
What you wear to vote has implications whether you’re aware of them or not. The subliminal meaning of wearing red or blue becomes a talking point. I was even asked if the red scarf I was wearing on Thursday was purposeful (it was not). The election, or any political event happening highlights just how important fashion is – how what we wear speaks volumes.
And, following Donald Trump’s win, this is not going to stop. From the MAGA hat I spotted down Market Street on Friday morning to the “Men Should Shut Up” slogan t-shirts I noted in my English lecture, fashion speaks when sometimes we cannot. It allows our voices to be heard.
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