The Our Fear of Freedom: American Fashion and Fascism (Part II)

Prompt No. 60: The Disconcerting Consumption of Whiteness

“The idea of innocence faces two ways. By refusing to enter a conspiracy, one remains innocent of that conspiracy. But to remain innocent may also be to remain ignorant.”
- John Berger

There is a fascinating connection between fascism and consumption that is challenging to explain concisely. That is why this post is so overdue. The difficulty lies in demonstrating that much of what white people consume is simply whiteness, products that mythologize white identity to maintain a power differential in society. It is a cycle of consumption that begins with concerted ignorance and is perpetuated by the status anxiety that ignorance invokes. To placate the feeling, consumers double-down, investing further into racialized outputs that both justify and reinforce their mediocrity. White women are particularly susceptible, given their role in white hegemony. As both the oppressor and oppressed, white women participate in this and other forms of symbolic violence to protect their position within the hierarchy and it is incredibly disconcerting to witness. Whether patronizing a boycotted company or defending problematic personalities, their obliviousness and utter disregard for the world outside of whiteness is an affront we are all expected to overlook. However, as the U.S. continues to collapse into the political system of authoritarianism, we need to address this sort of consumption for what it is – a highly prevalent and socially acceptable form of racism that worsens the social and economic condition of white people. Honestly, I had no idea where to start.