MIUSE: ISSUE 1

Author: Lola Gian
Page 98
Image: Jamie Stoker/GoRunway.com
Little by little, feminism has become more visible and
has gained some representation in the media during
the last few years. To become political as well, the
House of Dior, under Maria Grazia Chiuri’s direction,
has joined this movement, but are their statements
sincere?
For her first Dior collection ever, Maria Grazia sent
two models, out of sixty-five, down the runway,
both with simple white t-shirts matched with black
tulle skirts. One of the t-shirts said: We should all
be feminists, and the other one: Dio(r)evolution.
Everyone was delighted with this collection, stating
that it was clear that the person in charge was now
a woman that refused to stick with the ladylike DNA
of the house, and that a new era was starting and
bringing the revolution to fashion. However, we have
not seen that so-called revolution yet.
It is known that for prestigious brands that have an
established audience, just like Dior, it is crucial to
think thoroughly what changes they should make
in order to please their clients while evolving at the
same time, and intersectional feminism is not a thing
to take lightly. It has been almost four years since
Maria Grazia is the creative director of Dior and her
mediocre take on feminism has not changed. She
continued delivering tops with recycled quotes that
evoke Girl Power, Sisterhood, and Revolution in
many shows but without genuinely engaging in any
movement through decision-making at the Maison.
The atmosphere in her runways amplifies this
poor white feminist discourse. For example, in the
autumn/winter 2020 Dior show, neon signs saying:
When women strike the world stops. Patriarchy =
climate emergency. Consent. Consent. Consent.
were all over the venue like it was a mixture of
today’s newspaper but with no actual content. But
then, when the show starts, the truth is right in front
of our eyes and we cannot help but wonder, how
sincere is Dior regarding these political statements
that they are trying to sell us?
According to Good On You world-leading source
of trusted brand ratings on ethical and sustainable
fashion–, Dior’s overall rating, which includes
environmental impact, labour conditions, and animal
welfare, is Not Good Enough. “Although it monitors
health and safety issues with an internal procedure,
there is no evidence it ensures payment of a living
wage in its supply chain or that it publishes supplier
lists, and it sources its final stage of production from
countries with extreme risk of labour abuse!” Good
On You on Dior’s rating, May 2019.
We assume that for Dior, feminism and Girl Power
simply do not apply to women who manufacture its
luxury goods, they only apply to the clients that can
afford its white t-shirts. In addition, their miserable
attempt to include Climate Change in their discourse
was doomed to fail. It takes little research to know
that Dior’s textile waste has not decreased in the past
few years and that they still make use of leather and
exotic animal skin and hair. We are not against big
brands taking the initiative of becoming sustainable,
and of supporting feminism, but we will not buy fake
designer statements. Before endorsing sustainability,
become sustainable. Before selling Girl Power,
empower girls.