First of all what is censorship?
Censorship is the act of hiding or removing ideas, words, media, that are viewed as unacceptable, or inappropriate. In other words, it's a form of mind control that inables people from making their own opinions on issues viewed as harmful for society as a whole.
So what is fashion censorship?
Fashion censorship is the act of denying yourself or others from dressing beyond the "norm". It is the act of subjecting or being subjected to the opinions of someone else's fashion style as the guidelines of what you wear.
How does it happen?
The whole process is so subtle, pretty much nobody even realizes it has affected them. There is no big green monster in real life, forbidding you to wear anything. However, the monster does exist, and it is created by society. It forbids you from dressing outside of the cookie cutter and straying from what is "popular". Need proof? What are trends really?
For me, I can remember back to Junior High and loving these amazing, fluorescent green suede shoes. They were lace ups, with a black chunky platform and so bright you would think they were made of Kryptonite. I can remembering being so excited to wear them on my first day of Junior High, and absolutely positive everyone would rave at my awesome find! To my shock, my shoes were received in utter disgust. I could literally see their eyeballs pop out of their head, and the gasping shock of horror on their faces. Everyone sneered and giggle cruel remarks, "Nice clown shoes Maya." or "Please never wear them again Maya." Suddenly my shoes felt like a horrible mistake. I felt out of place, and unwanted. This is what it meant to go against the "Norm". I was embarrassed and with that comes fear. Suddenly my judgement seemed inadequate, and I learned my opinions could not be trusted. I studied magazines, followed trends, and picked up on what everyone else deemed appropriate to wear. Now, people were noticing, and I was accepted. It felt good. It felt right. It just wasn't me.
The thing is, as I achieved this "cool" status I was losing something far more precious, the ability to think, and form my own opinions. What happened to me? Where did I go? You get so busy impressing others, you forget to treasure your own voice.
Life is full of censors. Every time you try learning something about yourself, it is always visited by these censors of fear and doubt. After all, censors are simply warning signals of possible harm.
Be brave and fight against your fashion censors. Do whatever you think is right, and fight for it.
Sway from the pack, and you're labeled a freak. Stay with the pack and learn nothing.
xo,
Maya
