hardboiled

Bar Codes, Duct Tape and Education

How fashion and topics of sexualized labor can intertwine in the name of activism.

Girls shimmied down the catwalk one recent Friday night with tousled hair and high heeled stilettos – only these girls weren’t wearing the latest fashions, but duct tape, condoms and trash bags.

On March 6th, a full house packed the Multicultural Center for the first annual “Trafficked: A Political Fashion Show." Hosted by UC Berkeley's Gabriela Network (GabNet) in collaboration with STOP the Trafficking, the event aimed at spreading awareness of sex trafficking through art activism and politically-conscious designs.

The costumes – ranging from duct taped mail-in-order bridal dresses to bar-coded skirts – directed people's attention toward a topic that many regard as taboo. The designers chose materials associated with the trafficking of women and children in Third World countries to infuse political meaning into their avant-garde creations.

"What we can do is make the normal, abnormal," said Ana Espanola, junior and co-director of GabNET. "The goal is to spread awareness because we recognize that living in this part of the world where we are privileged, gaining an education freely, we can voice our opinion without being threatened to be killed."

In addition to the runway show, the event also featured spoken word pieces and photography. Guest speakers included Professor Joi Barrios and Ruby Verdiano Ching from Ill-Literacy, a Bay Area's spoken word group.

"The topic is really taboo and not talked about in any culture, even though it is so prevalent inside and outside the US, in cities like Oakland," said Tracy Nguyen, a sophomore and model for the event. "A lot of communities of color are affected by it, and a lot of women in the US and even the Bay Area get sucked into the business."

Nguyen's costume was an oversized dress-shirt with the words "Can't afford this shirt." In her catwalk routine, a well-dressed man symbolically handcuffs himself to her as she makes her way down the runway. When they reach the front, a model dressed as a police officer attempts to stop the two, and the well-dressed man hands him a roll of cash. As Nguyen turns we see that the back of her shirt reads, "But my trafficker can.” Meanwhile, the officer puts on his glasses, which read "Bought."

Espanola said that bribery is not uncommon among police and government officials in many Third World countries, especially in Southeast Asia. "If you think about it, a lot of police and government officials get money out of this," Espanola said. "We find trafficking even through Filipino maids and nurses going abroad to the United States. The Philippines depend on the remittances that nannies make and send back home – their government depends on that money."

GabNET attempts to understand the processes behind globalized trafficking through mass solidarity work towards women's empowerment and leadership roles. All proceeds of the event will go towards the Purple Rose Campaign, a global campaign that GabNET helped set up in 1999 to expose sex trafficking and violence toward mail-in order brides. According to the campaign, over 50,000 women and children are trafficked into the United States annually, and 5,000 Filipina mail order brides are bought by American men annually.

"It's more complicated than just saying ‘stop.’ There are situations where people get rescued and they don't want to be, because of numerous factors," Espanola said. "Awareness is the biggest key."

In a globalized market where women can be bought on craigslist.com, people can mobilize for the issue in many ways. It can be as simple as submitting a Purple Rose Campaign pledge card into 515 Eshleman to promise not to contribute to the forces that perpetuate trafficking, or calling if in you see anything suspicious. More active ways to get involved include volunteering or interning with organizations dedicated to stopping the trafficking of women, such as the Gabriela network. Many volunteers work directly with trafficking victims in the women's shelters of San Francisco.

"We can use our intelligence to stop this issue," Espanola said. "It's not about going straight to a country and trying stop it, but using awareness to target it. More of us can go as lawyers, doctors, emerging politicians... to have a bigger impact."

Meanwhile, those in attendance have already taken the first step in becoming proactive: educating oneself on the proximity of this global issue.

"People tonight didn't come out for the fashion show, but for the education," said Nguyen. "It was a full house. People care."