The Sunday News
FOR the last five years or so I have been babbling on about what looks good on whom and what doesn’t. I among many other fashion bloggers or writers have paid little or no interest at all in people living with disabilities. The question is who caters for them?
The world of fashion can be a very cruel and grueling environment. It is one of the most unsympathetic industries that have ruled the world since… well… time immemorial.
It has a very precise, exacting and unwavering view of beauty that has candidly ignored the rule of life. The general perception by people is that: for one to be fashionable, he or she has to be physically “flawless”.
I really shouldn’t be taking all the blame on this issue but, we all should.
We are all guilty of pushing an “agenda” that has brainwashed people’s minds since time immemorial. It’s a code of understanding, which has ruled most disabled people out of runways, fashion shows or whatever event associated with fashion. I don’t recall ever seeing a person living with disabilities at an event… well maybe once or twice. But the point is these fashion events don’t cater for them.
It is a picture that should be completely wiped out of people’s minds. Common social perceptions about people with disabilities mean that able bodied people are surprised by the fact that they are just like them.
Did you know that there are no designers focusing specifically on designing clothes for people using wheelchairs and other mobility devices, or people with disabilities that may affect limb length and body structure? I stand to be corrected there.
So what this basically means is that if you want to be fashionable, you are forced to modify clothing, because there are no options.
Such modifications may be necessary not just for fashion reasons, but also for comfort. For example wheelchair users are more comfortable in clothing that is not cut for people spending most of their time standing and walking.
When it comes to fashion designers, there are some very specific assumptions about the kind of bodies they cater for. Those bodies are slim and those are the kinds of bodies designers focus on. Designers who do consider physical disabilities in their work may be more focused on garb that is marketable but might not necessarily be fashionable.
Individuals with physical disabilities are often labelled ugly and unsightly, and it’s assumed they feel the same way about themselves.
This leads to the conclusion that their bodies are things that should be covered up and hidden away, rather than displayed and if any garments are going to be designed for them, they minimise rather than highlight their disabilities. They should create illusions such as making someone with short legs look longer.
The idea that someone might be comfortable in a disabled body, perhaps even to the point of wanting to show it off, is strange to those that are not physically challenged.
People with physical disabilities are very interested in fashion, just like some able bodied people are. I happen to be familiar or know a few people living with disabilities that are fashion enthusiasts.
Just like anybody they too go to any lengths to make themselves beautiful. That is just a typical example of how some people living with disabilities can be interested in fashion.
They follow fashion week and fashion news, they know their designers, try to attend and fashion events.
They are passionate about the fashion industry and may be particularly knowledgeable about specific design houses and trends.
They are interested in keeping pace with fashion trends because they love fashion.
Because of their disability they are silently barred from participating in it. Most fashion events that happen in the city are held at venues that are somewhat not easily accessible to them, talk of long flights of stairs and no wheelchair ramps. Perhaps this is a way of telling them they don’t qualify for inclusion in the fashion world because their bodies don’t “belong” there. This is very sad, in my opinion.
Unless you are wealthy and have a physical disability, which is a highly unusual combination, there’s a limited chance of ever having designer clothes that will fit you.
Custom clothes for people with disabilities are rare because so few have the money to pay for it.
Consequently, disability doesn’t even land on the radar of fashion designers.
It is sad to note that designers have totally ignored people with disabilities but focus on making high-end maternity wear, driven by demand from public figures who want to look fashionable all the time.
If they are able to design for pregnant women why can’t they do the same for disabled people?
Buying clothes of any form can be an exercise in frustration for disabled people.
Being fashionable is even more of an uphill battle, because fashion doesn’t include them.
Till next week, keep styling. Link up with me for your views and comments via whatsapp or sms ONLY on 0772 337 433. You can also send me an e – mail on [email protected]
