CAN YOU BE A FEMINIST AND WORK IN FASHION?

Posted by Bethan Holt, Fashion Junior at Large

Surely David Gandy makes men feel just as bad about themselves as Kate Moss does women? (image via ftape.com)

Radio 4's Woman's Hour is something of an institution; a fact I was reminded of when I listened in this morning and items on the agenda included underage sex and a guide to the pestle and mortar. Where else would that happen? I don't get to listen very often but I made a point of finding the Listen Again option this afternoon having been out and about this morning. Earlier I had seen a tweet from the programme asking whether it's possible to be a feminist as well as working in fashion. I find myself fighting the corner for being a fashion feminist all the time so I was really wanted to see how this panned out. The guests were Angela Clarke, who wrote the column and subsequent book Confessions of a Fashionista, and Ghost founder Tanya Sarne. You could easily make an hour-long documentary on this subject- I feel like the Woman's Hour discussion barely touched the surface. Angela spoke about  women being sent off to be told how to apply make-up and how to dress in her time at Harrods- a sad practice, yes, but more a symptom of working in a corporate environment which demands conformity. I have friends who work in the city, boys and girls, who are put through those kinds of workshops. The big issue with this debate is that people mistake fashion industry flaws like young models and body image for feminist problems which they aren't because they happen to boys too.  I think fashion is empowering, fun and a celebration of great design, no more harmful to women than football is to men. Do you agree?

Listen to the discussion again here, it's 25 minutes in.