Everyday Canvas

Uniforms and Wearing Similar Clothing

Prompt: Recently, women wore ‘Handmaid’s Tale’ robes during their protest at Texas Senate. For what reasons, do you think, clothing can communicate certain ideas for different occasions, and why do we humans resort to using clothing to send a message?

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In today’s society, in general, people wear uniforms in the armed forces, in some schools, workplaces and emergency, hospital, and police services. This is for the workers and the public to recognize the people who work in a specific work environment, especially where too many people are employed. Then, wearing similar clothing also provides solidarity, a feeling of belonging and equality, an imposing effect on the public, and a means of pride.

People who wear uniforms care more for their colleagues and for their growth as well as their own, and they project a certain lifestyle to the onlookers. Wearing uniforms has been around since the earliest of civilizations; therefore, it must be a human thing to recognize people and their vocations from the clothes they wear.

It must be this recognition that demonstrators, protestors, and some anarchists may be counting on. Anyhow, most semi-serious organizations and activist groups who work only temporarily or plan demonstrations for a certain cause may not have a complete dress code but possibly a piece of similar clothing with a special meaning to the group. Apart from this norm, Ku Klux Klan outfits and Handmaid’s Tale robes are full uniforms instead of just the weird hats women wore to protest today’s president’s presumed stance on women, but this didn’t matter to them as long as their clothing delivered their precious messages.

Speaking for me, I don’t exactly grasp why the second group of people resort to wearing similar clothing during the protests and demonstrations, but my feeling is, this has to do with giving one another moral support, so nobody dares to chicken out of their planned activity.