Why You Should Wear White This Independence Day

This doesn’t mean you can’t wear your flag shirts, so don’t get all defensive. I’m just thinking that instead of just reserving the white clothes for this past Saturday’s march, we should also wear them for Independence Day. Why? Because that would be a really great statement to make.

On June 30, people in cities all over the United States participated in the Families March Together march. This was in protest to the Trump administration’s family separation policy, where children have been separated from their parents while crossing the border into the U.S. Although Trump has signed an executive order that makes it so families will be detained together, around 2,000 immigrant children still remain separated from their parents. There is no set plan to reunite the children either, even though a U.S. judge has ordered the Trump administration to speed up the process.

A boy at a march in El Paso, Texas holds up a sign that reads “Children need their parents.” Image credit: Joe Raedle/Time

Clothing has been used as a form of protest for a very long time, and the fashion industry has seen more and more protests of late. Whether it’s something going down the runway or on the racks in stores, the industry is becoming more vocal about today’s political issues. I think that this is important, especially since the fashion industry is usually seen as a pink, fairytale industry.

Why did protesters wear white? The organizers stated that white is a “striking visual symbol that will also connect attendees in solidarity to each-other and channel historic social justice movements unified by one color of clothing.” Not only this but on Thursday around 600 women were arrested while protesting the immigration policies. The majority of these women were wearing white. And in my opinion, the color white is seen as innocent, so the white garments could be a reference to the innocence of the children being detained at the borders.

The foil blankets piled up behind the protestors as the women who were wearing them were arrested at a protest in Washington D.C. Image credit: Kisha Bari/Twitter

Independence Day is the day that America gained its freedom from England over 200 years ago. This country was founded by immigrants, fleeing persecution, famine, and poverty. With that as our history, it would be assumed that we would be more accepting of families and individuals trying to enter the U.S. with the same reasoning as our founders before us.

So even if you’ve been planning which Old Navy flag shirt you were going to wear for this Independence Day, think of pairing it with a pair of white shorts, or even some white shoes. Any white will be a symbol of solidarity for this nationwide movement. Maybe after dressing in your red, blue, and most importantly white attire, you will take your protest one step further and contact your Congress representative to voice your concerns about the U.S. immigration and deportation policies.

Share your white outfits this holiday with me by commenting your picture down below!