How does politics affect fashion, and vice-versa?

Most people wouldn't correlate fashion and politics, and I certainly don't blame them. Fashion is an art form, an exhilarating lifestyle -- beauty is the law of the land in the world of fashion. Politics is exciting to an extent, but has hundreds of laws and is very systematic and structured. There isn't much beauty--especially in the clothes (hello Hillary Clinton!). Then again, most politicians are too busy corrupting the government and accepting funds from lobbyists for their "campaigns" to worry about beauty or, at the least, attractiveness.

Anyway, the question popped into my head this morning: Can politics affect fashion? And if so, how?

When I oiled up the gears in my brain and they got to movin', I found the answer -- yes.

During the Great Depression, all families were hit hard, especially in terms of clothing. In junior high, I remember a guest speaker coming to my history class. She was a survivor of the Dust Bowl with a surprisingly sharp memory. She talked about how scarce resources were, particularly when it came to her clothes; she only had two dresses two alternate with for church, school, etc., all because of the Depression and the accumulative Dust Bowl.

In more modern times, I would say that politics still affects what we wear and what is manufactured, especially right now in the heat of the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election. There are T-shirts, messenger bags, and all sorts of apparel & accessories being made -- and they're not only produced by the candidates' campaigns either.

This shirt is sold by Urban Outfitters and seems to be quite popular with customers. Although not so high-end or runway-capable, it stills falls under the broad category of fashion, and I have seen people sporting this top and ones similar to it.

Not only does the election have an effect on fashion but so do all the laws and regulations that dwell around one little plant -- marijuana.

Stoners across America (and I mean that in an endearing way) have been fighting for decades to make marijuana legal -- at the least, decriminalized. Shirts with potleafs, bongs, and other paraphernalia have been selling quite well at specialty shops like Spencer's. I see people on YouTube all the time wearing these shirts while supporting the legalization of marijuana as well as petitions and bills towards its legalization. These videos and petitions have been effective, however. This also brings me to my next question.

Does fashion affect politics? Definitely, I think. Wearing a shirt supporting your favorite presidential candidate or to legalize the plant you wished you could have grown in your horticulture class grabs people's attention. It gets the word out without you even having to open your mouth; there's that 50/50 chance that someone's political opinion will sway all because of your fashion choices ... and that is extremely powerful. Embrace that power.

Question of the Day:

If you could control the clothes that politicians wear, who would wear what?

IMAGE SOURCES: FoulMouthShirts.com, UrbanOutfitters.com, VEAC.org