The LGBTQIA+ community has long been integral to the fashion industry, shaping its evolution and pushing its boundaries. Across history, individuals and collectives within the community have contributed to fashion’s creativity, boldness, and progress – leaving a lasting impact on the industry and the broader cultural landscape. The presence of queer fashion is vividly expressed across the UTS campus, from the abundance of different artistic approaches to clothing and layering, to the mesmerising non-gender conforming styles of makeup visible on so many students.
But when talking about queer fashion, not one style can define it, yet it is deeply rooted within our society as one of the most powerful forms of protest we have. No matter how often others try to erase it, this expression always returns, bolder, more radiant, and more resilient than before. Queer fashion speaks to the unavoidable gaze – people are drawn to look at something special, something that changes the way they feel. It reminds them of the indomitable spirit that lives within the queer community.
While the politics of queer fashion may feel like a recent conversation in Australia, its roots run deep – tracing back to the first Mardi Gras march on June 24, 1978, held as part of 'International Gay Solidarity Day.' This monumental event not only shifted public recognition and treatment of the queer community, but also contributed to the repeal of legislation that had allowed arrests for homosexual acts, which was overturned in April 1979.Queer fashion, in this context, challenged societal norms, asserted queer visibility, and demanded equality in a world that has sought to suppress these identities.
I used to struggle a lot trying to understand why the queer community strives itself on being so fashionable, outfits each speaking differently on what individuals wanted to say without even uttering a word. Yet, the more I searched, the more I understood. Protesting through fashion doesn’t just come from publicly demonstrating your style and how you want the world to perceive you, but from what comes behind closed doors. In my experience, the hardest part of protesting wasn’t how others in my class would see me, but how I would voice the messages I wanted to express.
Without the medium of queer fashion, how else could I assert my identity to the world, declaring that my queerness is immutable, regardless of external judgment? How does one communicate an unshakeable fearlessness? It is through the exploration of fashion that one discovers the transformative power of self-expression.
With queer fashion, whether it is the amazing and eye mesmerising performances of drag queens, blurring the lines between gender norms and creating a vivid space for gender fluidity, or through Mardi Gras, promoting all the spectrums of queerness underneath the LGBTQIA+ community, the unique senses of fashion live to demonstrate the resilience of our community.
Queer people will always exist, and nothing will be able to snuff out the fire that burns fiercely within the souls of the LGBTQIA+ community. We will always stand in protest, using everything we have to make sure we are recognised and allowed to live the way we want without shame or punishment.
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