Identity and Fashion
Identity is one factor that is considered contentious and a compelling concept in humanity and social sciences. Fashion exhibits social evolution of humans in different aspects. Through appearance style which is either personal interpretations or resistance to fashion, a person announces who they are, who they want to be and who they do not want to be. Oftentimes, appearance style visually articulates multiple and overlapping identities such as ethnicity, sexuality, aesthetics, gender, age, politics and national identity. The aspect of individual and collective selves is an important one in identity disclosure as people are defined according to groups in which they are associated to.
Research Studies on Identity
Identity is a matter of systematic establishment between individuals and collectivities. Research studies conducted have explored clothing behaviour of homosexual men. It was established that people associated with the gay community use their clothing to signify homosexuality, attract partners and t blend into the homosexual or heterosexual society. After the 1970s, stigma and hate towards the association of gays and fashion which was wide spread began to dwindle. With the increase in intercultural fashion and information, while demanding for recognition and equality, gays and lesbians profoundly changed their style and appearance. The beginning of gay rights movement resulted in the change in how lesbians and gays were perceived.
Fashion and the Emergence of the "New Man"
As designers slowly took over from local tailors, a new gay trend became evident since homosexuals were willing to try out new fashion ideas and styles. The emergence of the "new man" was as a result to men's reaction to societal changes brought by a new, second way of feminism. In the 21st century, gay activism has made profound results that have led to tolerance of homosexuality by the society. This means that queer community can interact with others freely without necessarily having to communicate through clothing. Fashion has also shifted greatly from expressing identity to expressing of an individual self.
