S06 Episode 263 | Dr. Sandra Niessen on *sacrifice zones* & the layers of erasure in fashion

<p class="">In episode 263, Kestrel welcomes Dr. Sandra Niessen, a cultural anthropologist, fashion scholar and activist, to the show. In 2020, Sandra published a notable article titled: “Fashion, its Sacrifice Zone and Sustainability”, which we explore on the show. She currently works closely with <a href= "https://www.fashionactnow.org" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Fashion Act Now</a>. <strong>“The loss of fashion or the degrowth in fashion — people think of that as a closing down of our fashion system or our clothing system. And I think of it as an incredible enrichment — the opportunity to throw open the windows and throw open the doors, and be creative in ways we’ve never thought of before and that are written out there in the world in Indigenous clothing systems and we’ve ignored all the time.”</strong><br /> <strong>-Sandra</strong></p> <p class="" data-pm-slice="1 3 []">I first discovered this week’s guest, through a YouTube interview she did with Extinction Rebellion. It was focused on <a href= "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pkyf3IBgT0U" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">“Fashion & Degrowth, and exploring the link between decolonization and sustainability in fashion”</a>.</p> <p class="">In it, our guest said – “Try to imagine colonialism without fashion”.</p> <p class="">This really struck me – of course, we have deconstructed and broken down several layers of how fashion’s foundation is colonial, but this quote in particular really struck me, because I feel like the industry is rarely contextualized this way. </p> <p class="">It’s rarely even contextualized from a historical lens as far as the systems of power that have led to the construction of the current fashion system. Like what we worked to unpack through <a href="https://consciouschatter.com/the-root" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Root</a> series with Dominique Drakeford.</p> <p class="">But I guess what I’m getting at here is that suddenly, OTHERING was written across the sky in flashing lights for me.</p> <p class="">Imagine the ways t