From one religious and Marxist content creator to another I just want to thank you for all of your amazing educational work. Just know that despite all the hate you get there are people out there that truly admire your work, your worldview and your wonderful fashion sense - thanks, comrade!
Marxist on the capitalist TH-cam. You can’t get much more hypocritical than that. I take that back. Mix it with Islam and you’re really off your rocker. I guess some people just like being oppressed.
@@TheEsotericaChannel1) Christian socialism’s, non Marxist, started in 19th c. Marx criticized at least I faction, See Wikipedia artickes Christian lSocialism JewishSocialism Buddhist Socialism Islamic Socialism etc. US 20th c. Catholic Wotker Movement of Dorothy Day SMK of Iran, at least at 1st-- Show Islam& some sort of leftism, but now…? TheologybofbLiberation in Latin America & Brasil, 🧢1960s70e-- hugely influential Haïti later Marx & many early leftists were atheists , but they missed the populist or early socialist aspects of many religions, or at least those factions ,
Reminded of a conversation I had about 15 years ago (yikes) with a guy who grew up in Czechoslovakia and he was saying how even after having lived in the US since the fall of the USSR, it still confused him when people here would talk about how “everyone” had more conservative values back in the ”the good ol’ days” and he would always just think “uh my parents, my grandparents, and most of the adults I grew up with were communists.”
Communism is actually a very Conservative ideology. Most Communist states were always authoritarian, anti individualist, with conservative views on sex, gender etc. Which is why Communist states were extremely pro Natalist and jailed and executed LGBT people. Really Ayn Rand a refugee from the USSR said it best Christianity is the kindergarten of Communism and Communism like Fascism are just Christian heresies in the same way that Marx and Giovanni Gentile the founder of Fascism were mentored by Christian Theocrat Hegel.
Fun fact: Ayn Rand had to study in soviet union cause at the timr if you were a woman in the west capitalist countries you COULDN'T GO TO UNIVERSITY! she also only lived as long as she did because of FREE HEALTHCARE.
Badge? I went to meet my girlfriends parents, all Chinese immigrants from the Maoist era, and they all giggled and laughed for about 20 minutes because I *look* like Lenin. "You see you see anyone who grew up in a Communist country saw the image of Lenin many times." - forty seconds later - "You see, anyone who..."
@@hydratejsn It can also be alternatively described as “If the Peaky Blinders crew had a goth occultist who was too obvious about his political leanings.”
Interesting video. I liked the final point about having meaning behind what you wear. I know a lot of POC in the vintage community feel like wearing the clothing of the American bourgeoisie is radical in itself since their ancestors weren't able to dress that way.
What are UZS corporate class fashions? Real ones are too expnsuve for most, but people can wear cheaper copies & still look like less wealthy capitalists. By that way s mère reversal, still trapped in 2nd stage of dialectic- NOT 3rd stage transcendence by wearing new synthèse fashion-- part old poor, part old rich, part innovation
romanitizing the bourgeoisie in fashion is such an interesting concept. I've literally been thinking lately about the "feminine energy" and elegance training movement type thing trending and wondering if its about working women trying to emulate the owning class as a kind of self improvement. I don't know if it is or if you know what I mean. Thought provoking concepts here with a visual feast of symbols
I think it specifically has to do with high society being the subject of a lot of media, and thus the princess or mistress trope being something some people try to emulate. Most of the children I know want to be a TH-camr or something like that when they grow up, and so did I when I was younger, but that’s just because you want to emulate the subjects of the media you consume when you’re young. I also think it has to do with the idea that we’ve gotten “too casualized” and that “people don’t have class anymore”. In reality I think people have just become hyper alienated and so old world ideas of class become appealing as a way to differentiate oneself.
@@joanofarcxxi where is emulating communist asthetics mindless? Surely not here where people are consciously choosing style both for what it symbolizes and retro, used clothing to not be mindless consumers as if new fashion clothes are a necessity
Hey, all those Soviet clothes are dull and grey! “The pictures are in black and white film.” The anti-communists always have the most infantile complaints. The US in the 30s, 40, 50, had segregation, inequality for women, African Americans, Indigenous Peoples, immigrants, non-Protestants, homelessness, joblessness, higher education, healthcare, and other necessities as commodities(most of these problems still exist), yet because they had blue jeans, Coca Cola, and fancy clothes(for those who could afford it), the US is liberty and democracy and Stalin ate babies for breakfast. Another great video, comrade.
I think this myth is one of the stupidest and easiest to debunk. All one has to do is watch a Soviet documentary or movie from the times when color film became commonplace.
The US had problems but not nearly as much as the Soviets. For one the Soviets were very racist especially towards Jews, they slaughtered re;igious minorities, LGBT people, Kulaks and honestly did things like Nazino Island. Nothing the US did compares to Stalin's cannibal Island. Not to mention the famines because Communists can't farm, starvation, poverty (except for the Communist elite), Gulags etc. Hell Stalin didn't even have too much a problem with racism. The Soviets were even briefly aligned with the Nazis and the alliance only ended because Hitler betrayed them.
I mean. What I don't understand, is why the Soviets had such a hard time manufacturing blue jean's. They had money for ICBM's that could reduce cities to ash and kill millions of innocents in the blink of an eye. But somehow blue jeans were too expensive to produce? They should've cut back on expensive uranium enrichment, and simply reverse engineered some Levi's. God knows they had plenty of examples imported into East Germany to study.
I agree with the points made in the video, though I’d like to add that: In a truly classless society where self-determination really exists, I do think everyone should be able to truly wear what they want, even clothes traditionally associated with the bourgeoisie (unless those clothes require the need for capital accumulation by their wearers, of course); and there were those who wore relatively bourgeois clothing and still advocated for radical ideas as well. Marx himself wore the frock coat (which is a standard for most bourgeois men at the time). If I’m not mistaken, he also owned a monocle (which is perhaps the most bourgeois eyewear ever). Edited: additionally, the dandyish poet Oscar Wilde, who supported socialism, also wore highly debonair outfits (which would typically be considered bourgeois)
There's also people who explicitly wear clothes with bourgeois associations, sometimes with a twist, to subvert those values and appropriate them, like those modern dandies in Congo, or the aesthetics of opulence and glamour in the ballroom scene. It might in some ways romanticize the bourgeoisie, but also kind of suberts their aesthetics by making them for the most marginalized and sometimes parodying their sensibilities. It also allows marginalized people to experience the feeling of success and thriving in a society that bars them from having having a decent life
Not all upper class people were evil. The earlier scientists, leaders, thinkers, they were born from wealth. You need to have power to do great things. We should not forget that.
@@RedArrow808yes but it's illogical to expand that resent to the fashion of the elites. Look at the Chinese Hanfu revival movement for example - some of those gorgeous silk dresses/robes are based on what the landed elites wore during the Ming, Song or Tang dynasties, yet there are many Chinese socialists that wear them too. It goes in a similar way for bowler hats and fedoras with three piece suits, or for dresses with floral hats from the early 1900s - if these things are worn by working people for mere aesthetic reasons or as an expression of their personality, without those people having bourgeois aspirations or libertarian political views or anything, then I see no problem with it. I'm a communist too, but with all the destruction wrought on this world by neoliberal capitalism and impending irreversible climate catastrophe, we've got far greater issues to worry about and organise and fight against than bourgeois or elitistic fashions...
Well Marx like most Communists came from extreme wealth and privilege. He basically spent his life bumming off his family and Engels. Marx literally was the original Champagne socialist. My brother a Doctor who works harder than Marx ever did in his life and isn't a part of an ideology that comes in only to Christianity and Islam in how much people they killed accurately said that "Communism is a rich person's disease."
I would indeed like to have vintage values, if those vintage values were indeed those of a fellow communist! I have nothing but respect for the radicals of history, especially when they did so much in such harsh times as they lived in for an ordinary member of the working class.
I can understand why someone would be attracted to modern leftism, but vintage communists were murderous opportunists who literally recreated the elitist society they claimed to have torn down.
actually you could make a good vid out of this in modern times most peoples hopes are about being rich this goal is not that possible for everyone and people unable to do it get depresed etc
There’s a famous quote by a Brazilian educator called Paulo Freire that is something like “if the education we provide is not freeing, the oppressed kids will always dream of becoming the oppressors”
Alternatively, intentionally co-opt monopoly pilled capitalist-core aesthetic in an ironic manner, adorning oneself with jewelry and badges of radical progressive values, as a form of rebellion against the upper class. Maybe it wouldn’t hit as hard as it would if people were still wearing frock coats but it lets anyone use any fashion they prefer for how it looks, and mirrors the militant aesthetic of punk and hardcore which similarly parodies Facism.
@@commenterthe3rdI think this is at the core of, or a major contributor, to why young men are turning towards the “manosphere”. They aspire to be like Tate and aren’t told that we can’t all “make it”. So when reality hits and the young man fails or falls short, he then turns back to that “manosphere” for validation. It’s a cycle that just sets young men (and women) up for more failure and mental anguish. We aren’t given role models with attainable values, we are given millionaire influencers
This video really means a lot to me as a fashion design student. My last collection for my third year was actually inspired by lamanova and early soviet workers fashion while dealing with socialist movements in the 20s. Thank you for bringing more light to this. Doing research on all of this was very tedious and its great that there's more accessible content on it now
Also as someone with someone with my expressed radical values it's important to find ways in which people throughout history have attempted to revolutionize fashion in a way that doesn't feed into the ever increasing exploitation and destruction
What a great service you do. You are humanizing Soviet Russia, and helping everyone understand that no two peoples are so distinct as to resort to hate. I too enjoy vintage fashion: I’m a cowboy, and have had radical values since my early youth.
Well, I’ve fallen off a horse twice, grown alfalfa, driven tractors, delivered calves, saved steers with bloat in springtime, dug trenches for irrigation pipe, installed electrical in barns (two I lived in), drilled wells, used ATVs to mend fence without seeing anybody for days, and more. Being a cowboy is a whole lot more that a costume; it’s a culture of gentlemen and ladies that would never second guess what someone says they are. 🤠
Is nice to see you making videos for youtube, I miss them. I'm never been too interested in clothes or fashion, but you make me think a lot about it, for the best. Thank you always for inspiring us. Salud comrade ✊🏼
I always look foward to when you upload. I know you get alot of demeaning comments but please keep up the good work. Insha'allah more people will discover your work
i was not expecting to hear "as-salam alaykum comrades" today but im glad to have found your channel ❤ great video, really good insight, might look into moving my clothes more vintage tbh also that Wendy's commercial lmao 😂
Renaissance faires are rife with people dressed up as kings, princesses, knights... The only way you're gonna see someone dressed as a peasant is if they have a skit they are playing a part in that requires them to be. Amusingly enough, you see some of the same aristocratic outfits being worn in attendance at a coven meeting, because, as we all know; witches are exclusively from the Italian peninsula and the 1500s... This kind of thing has always... Maybe bothered is too strong of a word, but it's always made me kinda scratch my head nontheless. But I guess it's kinda like how people think "I'll dress like a cowboy" and then their ensemble has no dirt on it, boots look all expensive and shiny, etc, etc. An idealized and consumerist interpretation of the thing itself.
This is a really good example actually. I always wear folk dress to Renaissance faires. Which would be essentially the kinds of clothing my ancestors would have worn on special occasions or like to church LOL. Every time I wear folk wear I get tons of people commenting that they wish they saw more people dressed that way at the fair! I think it's every historian / researcher's worst nightmare to try and expect historically accuracy at a Ren faire tho
@@LadyIzdihar very true, and I can't judge too harsh anyway because I have gone to a ren faire in a straight up wizard robe, with runes on the sleeves and everything lol. The local ones are a mesh of historical "cosplay" and fantasy cosplay for the most part, and I jive with it, it's good fun tbh. I'm personally very fixated on the different hats of the early Bolsheviks, is there a specific name for the flat cap styles which were common for them, or are they just flat caps?
@@rachelgray6790 that's awesome! Even though I did the wizard robe thing at a Ren faire before, lol, I like the idea of wearing the tunic+trews+belt if I dress up for one again.
I've told people many times, my values did exist in the past, just only to a select few. Because for certain not everybody was this far right thing that has taken over the vintage fashion we love. Comrades, we need to appreciate and use vintage fashion just the same. There are a surprising number of communists in the vintage spaces. I like this video, I will be sending it to many people.
What a great service you do. You are humanizing Soviet Russia, and helping everyone understand that no two peoples are so distinct as to resort to hate. I too enjoy vintage fashion: I’m a cowboy, and have had radical values since my early youth.🤠
Aw Hell Yeah! A New Lady Izdihar Video! 🎉 I haven’t even seen the whole video yet, but I can already tell that it’s gonna be good. Solidarity Comrade. ✊
It seams like most of the vintage mens wear channels are always talking about suits and fancy dress. but Ive mostly gravitated toward workwear. I dont know if everyone should dress like a worker, but I actually do work in a woodshop and want to dress like similar people from another era. workwear is also usually close enough to modern jeans and a tshirt in many ways that it doesnt feel wierd wearing around town in everyday/modern life. I hadnt thought about it as political before, but Im all for it.
*AS A CARD CARRYING COMMUNIST* and bespoke tailor of men's historical fashion - I _guess_ this video is for me...? EDIT: I enjoyed that immensely...!!!
I started with vintage literature to get outside of an oppressive and flattening propaganda... i discovered beautiful classics from long gone decades and an incredible variety of points of view, ideas, experiences from wich really shape my personality. This video on the value and potential of vintage fashion is really inspiring! Thanks!
I love this!! I’ve really been enjoying sewing my own western European peasant style clothing, it’s really cool to see how people made practical and beautiful clothes that conserve fabric and last. Gonna be wearing my berets more now too!
Thank you for sharing your perspective! I have mixed feelings about deeming things that are typically bourgeois as bad. You know, as a queer person living in Romania....the whole "bourgeois degeneracy" stuff still has a very real, very painful effect on my life Moreover, queer fashion is often flamboyant and let's say.....more resembling of "bourgeois" styles. That's a whole other discussion, I know pink washing is a real problem, I know the west has often used us in order to harm socialist movements (tho I would note that the opportunity to do so was created by the way we were treated by our very tovarăși).....anyway, I'm sure you get the point Moreover, why is it that unisex styles mostly mean women adopting men's styles? But as soon as it's something very feminine, it's "bourgeois"? In any case, you have given me a lot to think about, and as always, thank you for sharing your perspective! I think that, regardless of how we choose to dress, we all have some deconstructing to do
I think when it comes to access to particular commodities and proliferation of specific aesthetics, something being “bourgeois” is relative to said access and proliferation. At one point in history, simple tables and chairs where things only the ruling classes had access to; in that period these now common objects could be considered bourgeois because the proletariat had none. Now that these things are everywhere the same can’t exactly be said. Same can be said for fashion sense
And in the USSR specifically, industry was heavily focused on infrastructure and military rather than a variety small commodities. This would come to be helpful housing people and playing a major role in WW2, but people simply like nice things, and a lack in variety of clothing and simple commodities was a genuine gripe from the Soviet peoples. If the opportunity and resources had been there, I’m sure Soviet fashion could’ve and would’ve gone far beyond the utilitarian focus of clothing; which in my opinion was still very cool.
@@rando3939 thank you for sharing! What I'm hearing is that ultimately, the context is really important. I don't know exactly how to express myself, I feel like I need a guided journal just to work out my feelings about all this, but maybe with time I'll get there :))) Also, about the actual fashion sense, it sure was cool! Maybe not my style, but if I lived through a war, it might have been. Living through a pandemic seemed so out there, but when it actually happened.....idk, it makes perfect sense when you're actually in that situation Also, that Wendy's ad from the videos....is funny if only because of how wrong it is :))) Romania was not having a good time in the '80s, but I know what my family was wearing during that time, and there was so much variety compared to what they're portraying. Even before becoming a communist I could tell the west is exaggerating those things
*THE BEST SOVIET MEDAL* I have ever found was a "Awarded For Not Bineg Arrested Drunk For 2 Months" It was in a junk store here in Bulgaria and I didnt by it - I wish I had... I would love to know how much the "GOOD WORKER OF THE WHEET HARVES" and such badges meant to people - did they really care about them, or were they seen as junk...?
@@LadyIzdihar When I first moved to Bulgaria 15 years ago there were thousands of them in the junk shops, also lots of enamel factory signs - they were super cool.
Loved hearing about this, thank you so much! In the past, there was a blog called steampunk Emma Goldman in which the writer tried to explain what it was to dress steampunk/ Dieselpunk from a more leftist side of history. It prompted me to investigate what spanish guerrilleras wore, and try to compose my own outfit, since it's part of my family history. It was a very empowering thing :)
I vibe with this take so much! I'm Creole with mostly African/ west Asian descent, and while I am interested in African history and culture before the colonial rule I never felt attracted by the fashion of any African diasporas. I've always been attracted to vintage European and slavic fashion
I love love your style. It is so beautiful. When I watch old movies, I see the wonderful tailoring and beautiful quality woolens and silks from the 1940's and 1950's and want so much to recreate them and I am not thinking of the political values at all. I'm more honoring history and evolution of thought over time.
Reminds me of labels associated with food production. Organic food is considered newfangled and modern while chemically fertilized, factory-farmed foods are viewed as "traditional".
Oh my God, I’m a communist and a giant historical /vintage fashion nerd, and the fact that your channel exist at the intersection of these things brings me so much joy. How have I not discovered you before?!??
I haven't heard you speak much about your husband! So good to hear of some of the shared values you have. That's so awesome and something I truly hope to find in life also. GREAT information as always comrade. Thank you!
The only comrade in the world, I Believe, that would have me putting serious consideration into fashion! I certainly recognize the need to reject the bourgeois styles and show solidarity. Thank you again!
@@LadyIzdiharit really did fit. As much as I love the short bits on tiktok, you did a lot in a great way with the longer format. I've missed your dives into details!
On the subject of "why is the clothing of the working class inherently less desirable", I love the blue samfu, which is both considered the ethnic clothing of Hakka people like me, as well as the working class attire of Han Chinese people historically.
This is cool and brings up a lot of good points! Decided to subscribe :) I gotta say though, I think a lot of people into vintage fashion don’t start by saying “I want to dress vintage! Okay cool, now I’ll pick the class and time period and social context.” I feel like folks get attracted to images of styles, which unfortunately are obviously very biased in favor of folks who aren’t in the working class, and pursue wanting to look like *that.* Saying “hey it’s awesome you’re into that but what if you try dressing like a garment worker instead?” feels like it’s sidestepping that a big reason people want to dress in styles is because of the styles in particular not the label “vintage fashion.” To be fair though, I’m more into historical costumes than “vintage fashion” per se, so I’m not the most informed on why people get into that in particular.
I think we ought to wear political pins as a rule, so that our values are conspicuous. Beyond that, there is some anachronism in judging old clothes by their contemporary standards in the modern context. For example, the bowlers you mentioned being associated with the bourgeois were considered a very practical working class garment for most of the 19th century, especially in the western US. Nowadays, wearing any type of suit, vintage dress, or other such garment is considered by most people as bourgeois, and vintage clothing in general, whether authentic or reproductions, tend to command hefty prices most people can’t afford as a regular expense, assuming they are created by people who are paid enough (that’s leaving out material and sustainability concerns, which raise the price further). Sure, you can find vintage clothes and styles if you have time to scout eBay and your local thrift stores and estate sales all the time, but even then you’d be spending more than a modern outfit from Walmart, and you’re suffering an immense opportunity cost. Not feasible for people who are impoverished. So then if it’s mostly the middle class who can afford this fashion in the first place, what’s the judgement on clothes of the middle class from history? Most of the time, the middle class, while not themselves bourgeois, had access to the same institutions, resources, and clothes that higher class individuals outside of the super wealthy had access to. For example, the poor would have never been invited to a white tie affair, but it might be something a middle class family had experience with. That same family would have benefited to a greater degree from slavery and colonialism than the poor. The middle class has also had a large part in revolutionary activity, since they are still part of the working class, just better off. All in all, good video, I think that it has good political use to dress like radicals of old, but that we can also envision a future where class divide originating in clothing is behind us, and people can wear what they want, so long as us modern progressives are clear with our intentions and values. After all, the upper class has been casualizing since Victorian times when traditional peasant fabrics like tweed and tartan were co-opted along with the romanticization of the country side and whatnot. Modern billionaires deliberately wear casual clothing to send a message, we might do the same by contradicting them the same way punks have co-opted the aesthetics of Facism to push radical ideas and force fascists to alter their own aesthetics.
Wow, this really hit me. I am a union steamfitter, and both in my work cloths and in my nonwork cloths i try to be purposefully and wear cloths that look well and age in a way that i find esthetically pleasing. I do see it as a way to concent to the labor radicals of the past and havr found it as a useful way to concent to the current radicals still out there on the jobsite today. I havent seen anyone else explain it in such an eloquent way
Just discovered your channel. What a surprise and a treasure! I also did not expect to hear "as-salam alaykum comrades" - more power to you! I have been a longtime student of the Soviet avant-garde and I really appreciated your showing that aspect of design. I deeply respect what you're doing here and I would LOVE to see you do a video essay on what is... or what Revolutionary aesthetic could/should be? When I was in Shanghai I had a lovely friend who was a member of the CCP (she specialized in Marxist research) and we had some fascinating talks about what role aesthetics and the arts could play in society that would be consistent with the goals of Marx without succumbing to bourgeoisie conspicuous consumption.
I Discovered the channel with that video, And as a communist (As 99% of subscribers), i became addicted in all videos about topics that i never found videos about, like Abraham Lincoln brigade and your work in combat fake-news about communism and the soviet experience in general. With comradeship, From a member of the Brazilian Popular Unity.
This video reaches me at the height of a desperate, desperate fashion inspo drought. Thanks for this! I will be doing plenty of research and would love to see anything else you put out on historical working class fashion.
Loved this video! I have definitely come across that expression "vintage fashion, not vintage values" and I have never reached the realization of how vague and politically fragile it is. I love this better, more aligned with my political and social views! And not only that, most importantly this video made me think how much my research into vintage fashion has been uncounciously dictated by mostly US and more generaly western fashion trends that not always were aimed to be worn by working class people, even though I have strong opinions against so-called "haute culture" brands that are actually luxury brands (that a lot of times don't present clothing that should be considered high fashion, i.e. made with special attention to the quality and the making of the clothing, from design to the finishing details) and the whole season oriented consumist capitalist fashion culture. But, now that you've brought this to my attetion, I do recognize that the parts of researching vintage fashion that ignite my interest the most are the ones when I find some link between the material and superstrutural conditions of a society and how that influences the making of the clothing that working class people would wear on their everyday lives. I will definitely keep it mind the symbolism and the political & historical context of the pieces of clothing and the people who wore it when doing my vintage fashion research, sewing, making, thrifting and wearing from now on. Thank you so much for making this video!
Now, I'm not a Communist, but I agree with everything you've said in this video. I live this way in my fashion journey, and I hope I can continue to do so. My views are certainly "radical" lol. I represent my own people and their struggles against oppressors thru all history.
Oh my mummified Lenin! This is gold dust! Thank you form making this! Yes! I would like to see a video about female military uniforms from the Great Patriotic War! Amazing work, please keep up!
This video made me happy to represent my class in my clothes, because the saying notion of "being fashionable" is to imitate the rich, which has always caused me strangeness.
so glad to have found your channel! i love vintage fashion and history, but us-centricness of it really sucks. i personally like 1920s fashion, but so much of it irks me with is consumerist nature, especially when looking at old magazines from the us and UK.
I think the problem is that a lot of big name vintage fashion/historical costuming influencers ARE the same class as the coal barons and servant havers. If they were dressing up in working class vintage, it would be class cosplay.
A fair point. Interestingly in real life, everyone I know who's into vintage fashion, myself included, mainly got into it because they grew up only able to shop at thrift stores. So you build a love for old styles.
Just discovered your channel! Super cool! This is so awesome, really cool to see this kind of combination of working class politics and the common human experiances of clothing and life. Looking forward to more, thank you comrade!
I always have veeery mixed feelings when I see collections of soviet medals. They are not just some random objects, they were given to specific people for specific achievements. So as for me other people kinda don't have moral right to posess these medals. And also a lot of these medals were sold by their owners during 90s because of extreme financial circumstances. My father's relatives were about to sell medals of their grandfather because of tough conditions. Fortunately, my father had some money at the momen, so he helped them and convinced not to sell grandfather's memory. And I understand that collectors have nothing to do with it, and it would be worse for these people who had sold their awards, if no one was buying. But still. These collections are extremely controversial subject for me.
More anti bourgeois content please :D But seriously I really enjoyed the perspective in this video, something I've only ever "felt" subconsciously without really thinking about it. Thank you!
Really Interesting video, I've used the phrase "Vintage Fashion, not vintage values" a lot but I think Radical Values is a much better term. I like to dress more working class when it comes to 20th century, but I admit I do prefer the bourgeoisie fashions of the 17th century.
This video is the first one I've seen from you, and I'm glad I did. You have me reflecting on how my increasingly Marxist leanings relate not just to my vintage clothes but my style in general. The bourgeois are always portrayed as the standard for clothing, to the point where when I try to wear more modest and utilitarian clothing my family members think it's too much so. It's like you can't afford to not look bourgeois in the U.S. without eventually looking weird. We working class are always expected to put on a face, especially in formal situations, to essentially cater to the "bourgeois gaze." But of course this isn't an excuse for myself, because I am just as culpable of mimicking bourgeois status in my everyday style here and there. My vintage collection is thankfully still very modest both in size and in content, and I still have a taste for utilitarianism over shoddy bourgeois mimicry. Hopefully this stays that way now that I have watched this video.
Question for you: were gloves popular in the USSR? I am not talking about practical winter gloves to keep warm but fashion gloves, mostly for women. What about that? Were they popular amongst women?
Loved the analysis comrade! Please do more videos like this! I’ve never thought much about fashion until recently, and I have recently gotten into military surplus, especially vintage surplus (60s era US surplus and East German is my favorite) It’s practical, durable and can be styled with my band shirts, I can take it to work and camping. As you might guess, this specific hobby is infested by right wingers. But that doesn’t mean that those are my values. If anything, I feel wearing old military surplus is a form of rebellion against conformity.
it’s funny when you mentioned people ask if their pin of baby Lenin is you’re relative. i have a photograph of Lenin on my wall and multiple times have asked if that was my grandpa and usually yes. since he is a grandfather to us all in a way
Reminded me of those Soviet debates on whether or not jeans should be allowed, given that they were American (this was during the Cold War period, mind), but also workers' clothing (at least originally). Also, of the debate on women's undergarments.
Now that I realize, this is so true. I mean, I was born in Venezuela and in my experience, interestingly, and precisely my style is always fully based on the early 1980s fashion to 1950s fashion (the 1950s was the beginning of a golden age for Venezuela, and on the black Friday of 1983 Venezuela's economy got stuck for the first time after its golden age). Since I was a child, my parents taught me about how good their lives were back then, and how the country seemed to reach a prosperity never seen before, because there was money and lots of opportunities. I guess clothing is my way to always bring with me this culture of prosperity that once made of Venezuela a recognized place in the world. "It is nostalgia of what it used to be and how it would have been to be there and live it". On the other hand, one day I had to dress up like a naz1 for a class and I fell in love with naz1 fashion, I felt like I could have worn that every single day, even though I don't feel any related to that ideology whatsoever. I also really loved all of the soviet outfits I saw on this video; I would definitely wear them even if my ideology is totally contrary to communism. PD: I think it is awesome to see actual radical people showing their ideas and opinions without being afraid, that's what freedom of speech is about, and it is absolutely wonderful to learn about other people's perspectives and points of view.
Funny because at one point Czechoslovakia and the GDR produced jeans and bathing suits that you couldn’t easily get in other Warsaw Pact countries. So, for example, Soviet and Bulgarian citizens would exchange their orthodox icons and other valuable household items for said jeans and bathing suits with Czechoslovak and German tourists. I know because I have a Bulgarian icon at home. The Wendy’s commercial is over the top but it essentially tells the truth. Desirable clothing items were at points very hard to get so you had to make do with whatever was available. Replicating “Soviet fashion” via American vintage shops in 2024 is a lot easier.
Great video. Could you explain why Che chose the beret though? You said it was a very intentional choice on his part, but what context was he referencing. If this video does well you should do one on some of the older fashion symbols of radicals, like the Phrygian Cap and Sans Culottes.
I’m a simple communist i see Lady Izdihar I click
From one religious and Marxist content creator to another I just want to thank you for all of your amazing educational work. Just know that despite all the hate you get there are people out there that truly admire your work, your worldview and your wonderful fashion sense - thanks, comrade!
Thank you so much for the kind message of support, it's greatly appreciated 🙏🏻
Of course I've been thinking about doing a live stream about being both Marxist and religious, if you're interested. @@LadyIzdihar
Definitely! Send me an email 💌 ladyizdihar@gmail.com
Marxist on the capitalist TH-cam. You can’t get much more hypocritical than that. I take that back. Mix it with Islam and you’re really off your rocker. I guess some people just like being oppressed.
@@TheEsotericaChannel1) Christian socialism’s, non
Marxist, started in 19th c.
Marx criticized at least I faction, See Wikipedia artickes
Christian lSocialism
JewishSocialism
Buddhist Socialism
Islamic Socialism
etc.
US 20th c. Catholic Wotker Movement of Dorothy Day
SMK of Iran, at least at 1st-- Show Islam& some sort of leftism, but now…?
TheologybofbLiberation in Latin
America & Brasil, 🧢1960s70e-- hugely influential
Haïti later
Marx &
many early leftists were atheists ,
but they missed the populist or
early socialist aspects of many religions, or at least those factions ,
Reminded of a conversation I had about 15 years ago (yikes) with a guy who grew up in Czechoslovakia and he was saying how even after having lived in the US since the fall of the USSR, it still confused him when people here would talk about how “everyone” had more conservative values back in the ”the good ol’ days” and he would always just think “uh my parents, my grandparents, and most of the adults I grew up with were communists.”
Moji predkovia boli socialisti. To bude asi tým, že u nás nikdy komunizmus nebol. Ten musíš ísť hľadať na o chvíľu bývalé teritória Ukrajiny.
Communism is actually a very Conservative ideology. Most Communist states were always authoritarian, anti individualist, with conservative views on sex, gender etc. Which is why Communist states were extremely pro Natalist and jailed and executed LGBT people. Really Ayn Rand a refugee from the USSR said it best Christianity is the kindergarten of Communism and Communism like Fascism are just Christian heresies in the same way that Marx and Giovanni Gentile the founder of Fascism were mentored by Christian Theocrat Hegel.
@@mariaavalon3730 Uhhhh...you do realize that the first Gay marriage in Philippines history was in a Communist guerilla base, right?
@@mariaavalon3730 Ayn Rand was a dullard, who wrote boring books about how wonderful it is to screw over the poors, she was always full of shite
Fun fact: Ayn Rand had to study in soviet union cause at the timr if you were a woman in the west capitalist countries you COULDN'T GO TO UNIVERSITY! she also only lived as long as she did because of FREE HEALTHCARE.
>Stranger sees badge
>"Is that a member of your family?"
>"Yes, it's grandpa Lenin"
Badge? I went to meet my girlfriends parents, all Chinese immigrants from the Maoist era, and they all giggled and laughed for about 20 minutes because I *look* like Lenin.
"You see you see anyone who grew up in a Communist country saw the image of Lenin many times."
- forty seconds later -
"You see, anyone who..."
Since we got a huge catholic population where I live I always say it's a Saint Vladimir medal
It's a pin, bratie. Not badge
"And our grandpa Lenin was a very good chief
He decomposed into linden honey and mould"
@@KennyHache English is my 3rd language, sue me.
My fashion choices can easily be described as "1930s Butch Lesbian Communist With A Love For Black Clothing".
you sound like the coolest person alive
I would love to see those outfits!
And those Communists would execute you as a butch lesbian for being a useful idiot. The Soviets certainly did.
@@ilse5220 Aw thank you!!!
@@hydratejsn It can also be alternatively described as “If the Peaky Blinders crew had a goth occultist who was too obvious about his political leanings.”
Interesting video. I liked the final point about having meaning behind what you wear. I know a lot of POC in the vintage community feel like wearing the clothing of the American bourgeoisie is radical in itself since their ancestors weren't able to dress that way.
What are UZS corporate class fashions? Real
ones are too expnsuve for most,
but people can wear cheaper copies & still look like less wealthy
capitalists. By that way s mère
reversal, still trapped in 2nd stage of dialectic- NOT 3rd stage transcendence by wearing new synthèse fashion-- part old poor, part old rich, part innovation
Making my fashion choice reflect my values is such an amazing thought! I defo will consider this going forward!
romanitizing the bourgeoisie in fashion is such an interesting concept. I've literally been thinking lately about the "feminine energy" and elegance training movement type thing trending and wondering if its about working women trying to emulate the owning class as a kind of self improvement. I don't know if it is or if you know what I mean. Thought provoking concepts here with a visual feast of symbols
I think it specifically has to do with high society being the subject of a lot of media, and thus the princess or mistress trope being something some people try to emulate. Most of the children I know want to be a TH-camr or something like that when they grow up, and so did I when I was younger, but that’s just because you want to emulate the subjects of the media you consume when you’re young.
I also think it has to do with the idea that we’ve gotten “too casualized” and that “people don’t have class anymore”. In reality I think people have just become hyper alienated and so old world ideas of class become appealing as a way to differentiate oneself.
No, let's instead mindlessly romanticize communist fashion. lol
@@joanofarcxxi where is emulating communist asthetics mindless? Surely not here where people are consciously choosing style both for what it symbolizes and retro, used clothing to not be mindless consumers as if new fashion clothes are a necessity
Hey, all those Soviet clothes are dull and grey! “The pictures are in black and white film.” The anti-communists always have the most infantile complaints. The US in the 30s, 40, 50, had segregation, inequality for women, African Americans, Indigenous Peoples, immigrants, non-Protestants, homelessness, joblessness, higher education, healthcare, and other necessities as commodities(most of these problems still exist), yet because they had blue jeans, Coca Cola, and fancy clothes(for those who could afford it), the US is liberty and democracy and Stalin ate babies for breakfast. Another great video, comrade.
I almost said something about that, how people misconstrue black and white photography for dull clothing
I think this myth is one of the stupidest and easiest to debunk. All one has to do is watch a Soviet documentary or movie from the times when color film became commonplace.
The soviet Union in those decades was colonizing the Baltics and purging innocent people.
The US had problems but not nearly as much as the Soviets. For one the Soviets were very racist especially towards Jews, they slaughtered re;igious minorities, LGBT people, Kulaks and honestly did things like Nazino Island. Nothing the US did compares to Stalin's cannibal Island. Not to mention the famines because Communists can't farm, starvation, poverty (except for the Communist elite), Gulags etc. Hell Stalin didn't even have too much a problem with racism. The Soviets were even briefly aligned with the Nazis and the alliance only ended because Hitler betrayed them.
I mean.
What I don't understand, is why the Soviets had such a hard time manufacturing blue jean's.
They had money for ICBM's that could reduce cities to ash and kill millions of innocents in the blink of an eye.
But somehow blue jeans were too expensive to produce?
They should've cut back on expensive uranium enrichment, and simply reverse engineered some Levi's. God knows they had plenty of examples imported into East Germany to study.
I agree with the points made in the video, though I’d like to add that: In a truly classless society where self-determination really exists, I do think everyone should be able to truly wear what they want, even clothes traditionally associated with the bourgeoisie (unless those clothes require the need for capital accumulation by their wearers, of course); and there were those who wore relatively bourgeois clothing and still advocated for radical ideas as well. Marx himself wore the frock coat (which is a standard for most bourgeois men at the time). If I’m not mistaken, he also owned a monocle (which is perhaps the most bourgeois eyewear ever).
Edited: additionally, the dandyish poet Oscar Wilde, who supported socialism, also wore highly debonair outfits (which would typically be considered bourgeois)
There's also people who explicitly wear clothes with bourgeois associations, sometimes with a twist, to subvert those values and appropriate them, like those modern dandies in Congo, or the aesthetics of opulence and glamour in the ballroom scene. It might in some ways romanticize the bourgeoisie, but also kind of suberts their aesthetics by making them for the most marginalized and sometimes parodying their sensibilities. It also allows marginalized people to experience the feeling of success and thriving in a society that bars them from having having a decent life
Not all upper class people were evil. The earlier scientists, leaders, thinkers, they were born from wealth. You need to have power to do great things. We should not forget that.
@@lc4n333don’t care. we poor rightfully resent them and that resent will have to be dealt with it’s not going away anytime soon.
@@RedArrow808yes but it's illogical to expand that resent to the fashion of the elites. Look at the Chinese Hanfu revival movement for example - some of those gorgeous silk dresses/robes are based on what the landed elites wore during the Ming, Song or Tang dynasties, yet there are many Chinese socialists that wear them too. It goes in a similar way for bowler hats and fedoras with three piece suits, or for dresses with floral hats from the early 1900s - if these things are worn by working people for mere aesthetic reasons or as an expression of their personality, without those people having bourgeois aspirations or libertarian political views or anything, then I see no problem with it.
I'm a communist too, but with all the destruction wrought on this world by neoliberal capitalism and impending irreversible climate catastrophe, we've got far greater issues to worry about and organise and fight against than bourgeois or elitistic fashions...
Well Marx like most Communists came from extreme wealth and privilege. He basically spent his life bumming off his family and Engels. Marx literally was the original Champagne socialist. My brother a Doctor who works harder than Marx ever did in his life and isn't a part of an ideology that comes in only to Christianity and Islam in how much people they killed accurately said that "Communism is a rich person's disease."
I would indeed like to have vintage values, if those vintage values were indeed those of a fellow communist! I have nothing but respect for the radicals of history, especially when they did so much in such harsh times as they lived in for an ordinary member of the working class.
I can understand why someone would be attracted to modern leftism, but vintage communists were murderous opportunists who literally recreated the elitist society they claimed to have torn down.
Let's talk about why people shouldn't aspire to be the bourgeois, that would be a great video.
actually you could make a good vid out of this in modern times most peoples hopes are about being rich this goal is not that possible for everyone and people unable to do it get depresed etc
There’s a famous quote by a Brazilian educator called Paulo Freire that is something like “if the education we provide is not freeing, the oppressed kids will always dream of becoming the oppressors”
Alternatively, intentionally co-opt monopoly pilled capitalist-core aesthetic in an ironic manner, adorning oneself with jewelry and badges of radical progressive values, as a form of rebellion against the upper class. Maybe it wouldn’t hit as hard as it would if people were still wearing frock coats but it lets anyone use any fashion they prefer for how it looks, and mirrors the militant aesthetic of punk and hardcore which similarly parodies Facism.
@@commenterthe3rdI think this is at the core of, or a major contributor, to why young men are turning towards the “manosphere”. They aspire to be like Tate and aren’t told that we can’t all “make it”. So when reality hits and the young man fails or falls short, he then turns back to that “manosphere” for validation. It’s a cycle that just sets young men (and women) up for more failure and mental anguish. We aren’t given role models with attainable values, we are given millionaire influencers
Yes, strive for mediocracy!!
I wish my house looked like your place... actually I kind of wished I had a house in the first place.
Believe it or not I'm in a cramped one bedroom apartment. My Office/filming space/living room/ Library is all one big box 😭
@@LadyIzdihar Well you make your one bedroom lively enough to seem bigger than it is 👌🏽
Just discovered you from Tiktok and as a fellow vintage fashion radical values comerade, I am so here for this! ❤
Welcome 🤗
This video really means a lot to me as a fashion design student. My last collection for my third year was actually inspired by lamanova and early soviet workers fashion while dealing with socialist movements in the 20s. Thank you for bringing more light to this. Doing research on all of this was very tedious and its great that there's more accessible content on it now
Also as someone with someone with my expressed radical values it's important to find ways in which people throughout history have attempted to revolutionize fashion in a way that doesn't feed into the ever increasing exploitation and destruction
What a great service you do. You are humanizing Soviet Russia, and helping everyone understand that no two peoples are so distinct as to resort to hate. I too enjoy vintage fashion: I’m a cowboy, and have had radical values since my early youth.
I doubt you are. Just like to play dress up.
Well, I’ve fallen off a horse twice, grown alfalfa, driven tractors, delivered calves, saved steers with bloat in springtime, dug trenches for irrigation pipe, installed electrical in barns (two I lived in), drilled wells, used ATVs to mend fence without seeing anybody for days, and more. Being a cowboy is a whole lot more that a costume; it’s a culture of gentlemen and ladies that would never second guess what someone says they are. 🤠
Oh this video is excellent, I really enjoy how you signposted many of the changes to different historical moments.
Thank you Steve. I'm really enjoying your TH-cam videos as well! Honestly it inspires me that you've switched to posting here so much!
Aaaaand subbed.
Is nice to see you making videos for youtube, I miss them. I'm never been too interested in clothes or fashion, but you make me think a lot about it, for the best. Thank you always for inspiring us. Salud comrade ✊🏼
I always look foward to when you upload. I know you get alot of demeaning comments but please keep up the good work. Insha'allah more people will discover your work
i was not expecting to hear "as-salam alaykum comrades" today but im glad to have found your channel ❤ great video, really good insight, might look into moving my clothes more vintage tbh also that Wendy's commercial lmao 😂
Shades of how George Galloway used to address Muslim audiences.
Renaissance faires are rife with people dressed up as kings, princesses, knights... The only way you're gonna see someone dressed as a peasant is if they have a skit they are playing a part in that requires them to be. Amusingly enough, you see some of the same aristocratic outfits being worn in attendance at a coven meeting, because, as we all know; witches are exclusively from the Italian peninsula and the 1500s... This kind of thing has always... Maybe bothered is too strong of a word, but it's always made me kinda scratch my head nontheless. But I guess it's kinda like how people think "I'll dress like a cowboy" and then their ensemble has no dirt on it, boots look all expensive and shiny, etc, etc. An idealized and consumerist interpretation of the thing itself.
This is a really good example actually. I always wear folk dress to Renaissance faires. Which would be essentially the kinds of clothing my ancestors would have worn on special occasions or like to church LOL. Every time I wear folk wear I get tons of people commenting that they wish they saw more people dressed that way at the fair!
I think it's every historian / researcher's worst nightmare to try and expect historically accuracy at a Ren faire tho
My girlfriend and I actually wore peasant garb to the ren faire last year, and we got tons of compliments! Ironically, I guess we looked unique!
@@LadyIzdihar very true, and I can't judge too harsh anyway because I have gone to a ren faire in a straight up wizard robe, with runes on the sleeves and everything lol. The local ones are a mesh of historical "cosplay" and fantasy cosplay for the most part, and I jive with it, it's good fun tbh. I'm personally very fixated on the different hats of the early Bolsheviks, is there a specific name for the flat cap styles which were common for them, or are they just flat caps?
@@rachelgray6790 that's awesome! Even though I did the wizard robe thing at a Ren faire before, lol, I like the idea of wearing the tunic+trews+belt if I dress up for one again.
Most people at Ren Faires don't even try to wear historical dress. I see more elves, fairies, and wizards than any sort of "Renaissance" clothing! 🤣
I've told people many times, my values did exist in the past, just only to a select few. Because for certain not everybody was this far right thing that has taken over the vintage fashion we love. Comrades, we need to appreciate and use vintage fashion just the same.
There are a surprising number of communists in the vintage spaces. I like this video, I will be sending it to many people.
The working class certainly did have beauty and style, yes. Communism is about art more than any other ideology - art for all.
What a great service you do. You are humanizing Soviet Russia, and helping everyone understand that no two peoples are so distinct as to resort to hate. I too enjoy vintage fashion: I’m a cowboy, and have had radical values since my early youth.🤠
Aw Hell Yeah! A New Lady Izdihar Video! 🎉 I haven’t even seen the whole video yet, but I can already tell that it’s gonna be good. Solidarity Comrade. ✊
It seams like most of the vintage mens wear channels are always talking about suits and fancy dress. but Ive mostly gravitated toward workwear. I dont know if everyone should dress like a worker, but I actually do work in a woodshop and want to dress like similar people from another era. workwear is also usually close enough to modern jeans and a tshirt in many ways that it doesnt feel wierd wearing around town in everyday/modern life. I hadnt thought about it as political before, but Im all for it.
*AS A CARD CARRYING COMMUNIST* and bespoke tailor of men's historical fashion - I _guess_ this video is for me...?
EDIT: I enjoyed that immensely...!!!
I started with vintage literature to get outside of an oppressive and flattening propaganda... i discovered beautiful classics from long gone decades and an incredible variety of points of view, ideas, experiences from wich really shape my personality. This video on the value and potential of vintage fashion is really inspiring! Thanks!
The fact that Communists loved black leather jackets as a sign of revolutionary rebellion makes me love leather jackets even MORE
awesome this was fun! halfway through the video I tried out a red bandana, then a kuffiyeh as a headscarf + biker leather jacket combo and I look sick
I love this!! I’ve really been enjoying sewing my own western European peasant style clothing, it’s really cool to see how people made practical and beautiful clothes that conserve fabric and last. Gonna be wearing my berets more now too!
Thank you for sharing your perspective! I have mixed feelings about deeming things that are typically bourgeois as bad. You know, as a queer person living in Romania....the whole "bourgeois degeneracy" stuff still has a very real, very painful effect on my life
Moreover, queer fashion is often flamboyant and let's say.....more resembling of "bourgeois" styles. That's a whole other discussion, I know pink washing is a real problem, I know the west has often used us in order to harm socialist movements (tho I would note that the opportunity to do so was created by the way we were treated by our very tovarăși).....anyway, I'm sure you get the point
Moreover, why is it that unisex styles mostly mean women adopting men's styles? But as soon as it's something very feminine, it's "bourgeois"?
In any case, you have given me a lot to think about, and as always, thank you for sharing your perspective! I think that, regardless of how we choose to dress, we all have some deconstructing to do
I think when it comes to access to particular commodities and proliferation of specific aesthetics, something being “bourgeois” is relative to said access and proliferation. At one point in history, simple tables and chairs where things only the ruling classes had access to; in that period these now common objects could be considered bourgeois because the proletariat had none. Now that these things are everywhere the same can’t exactly be said. Same can be said for fashion sense
And in the USSR specifically, industry was heavily focused on infrastructure and military rather than a variety small commodities. This would come to be helpful housing people and playing a major role in WW2, but people simply like nice things, and a lack in variety of clothing and simple commodities was a genuine gripe from the Soviet peoples. If the opportunity and resources had been there, I’m sure Soviet fashion could’ve and would’ve gone far beyond the utilitarian focus of clothing; which in my opinion was still very cool.
@@rando3939 thank you for sharing! What I'm hearing is that ultimately, the context is really important. I don't know exactly how to express myself, I feel like I need a guided journal just to work out my feelings about all this, but maybe with time I'll get there :)))
Also, about the actual fashion sense, it sure was cool! Maybe not my style, but if I lived through a war, it might have been. Living through a pandemic seemed so out there, but when it actually happened.....idk, it makes perfect sense when you're actually in that situation
Also, that Wendy's ad from the videos....is funny if only because of how wrong it is :))) Romania was not having a good time in the '80s, but I know what my family was wearing during that time, and there was so much variety compared to what they're portraying. Even before becoming a communist I could tell the west is exaggerating those things
@@mirunapopescu indeed, it’s truly mind boggling how deep the anti-Soviet propaganda really goes
*THE BEST SOVIET MEDAL* I have ever found was a "Awarded For Not Bineg Arrested Drunk For 2 Months"
It was in a junk store here in Bulgaria and I didnt by it - I wish I had... I would love to know how much the "GOOD WORKER OF THE WHEET HARVES" and such badges meant to people - did they really care about them, or were they seen as junk...?
Omg I have to look that up! I really love Soviet anti drunkenness campaigns
@@LadyIzdihar When I first moved to Bulgaria 15 years ago there were thousands of them in the junk shops, also lots of enamel factory signs - they were super cool.
Loved hearing about this, thank you so much! In the past, there was a blog called steampunk Emma Goldman in which the writer tried to explain what it was to dress steampunk/ Dieselpunk from a more leftist side of history. It prompted me to investigate what spanish guerrilleras wore, and try to compose my own outfit, since it's part of my family history. It was a very empowering thing :)
Is that blog still active? I'd love to check it out!
I vibe with this take so much!
I'm Creole with mostly African/ west Asian descent, and while I am interested in African history and culture before the colonial rule I never felt attracted by the fashion of any African diasporas. I've always been attracted to vintage European and slavic fashion
I love love your style. It is so beautiful. When I watch old movies, I see the wonderful tailoring and beautiful quality woolens and silks from the 1940's and 1950's and want so much to recreate them and I am not thinking of the political values at all. I'm more honoring history and evolution of thought over time.
The Wendy's commercial 🤣
For more pins !
I would absolutely love to get your take on the recent extremely controversial Met Gala and how it has sparked comparisons with “The Hunger Games”.
Reminds me of labels associated with food production. Organic food is considered newfangled and modern while chemically fertilized, factory-farmed foods are viewed as "traditional".
A little sad you didn't go with "vintage fashion; vanguard values"
THATS SO GOOD!! Now I'm sad too
@@LadyIzdihar That could be the phrase for a vanguard party when discussing its uniform choice
Another devastating video by the incomparable Lady Izdihar. Yea!
Oh my God, I’m a communist and a giant historical /vintage fashion nerd, and the fact that your channel exist at the intersection of these things brings me so much joy. How have I not discovered you before?!??
I haven't heard you speak much about your husband! So good to hear of some of the shared values you have. That's so awesome and something I truly hope to find in life also. GREAT information as always comrade. Thank you!
People get weird when I mention him, but I felt that anecdote really fit!
The only comrade in the world, I Believe, that would have me putting serious consideration into fashion! I certainly recognize the need to reject the bourgeois styles and show solidarity. Thank you again!
@@LadyIzdiharit really did fit. As much as I love the short bits on tiktok, you did a lot in a great way with the longer format. I've missed your dives into details!
Hello Lady Izdihar.Your chanel is very important for keep the memory of Soviet Union.
Thank you for your work!
I do love fashion history and communism but it was so hard for me to not be obsessed with the bourgeoisie style so this video helped me thank you
glad to see you posting long form content again!!
On the subject of "why is the clothing of the working class inherently less desirable", I love the blue samfu, which is both considered the ethnic clothing of Hakka people like me, as well as the working class attire of Han Chinese people historically.
This is cool and brings up a lot of good points! Decided to subscribe :) I gotta say though, I think a lot of people into vintage fashion don’t start by saying “I want to dress vintage! Okay cool, now I’ll pick the class and time period and social context.” I feel like folks get attracted to images of styles, which unfortunately are obviously very biased in favor of folks who aren’t in the working class, and pursue wanting to look like *that.* Saying “hey it’s awesome you’re into that but what if you try dressing like a garment worker instead?” feels like it’s sidestepping that a big reason people want to dress in styles is because of the styles in particular not the label “vintage fashion.” To be fair though, I’m more into historical costumes than “vintage fashion” per se, so I’m not the most informed on why people get into that in particular.
Your videos are always so enjoyable and fascinating! Love from a Syrian ❤
I think we ought to wear political pins as a rule, so that our values are conspicuous.
Beyond that, there is some anachronism in judging old clothes by their contemporary standards in the modern context. For example, the bowlers you mentioned being associated with the bourgeois were considered a very practical working class garment for most of the 19th century, especially in the western US.
Nowadays, wearing any type of suit, vintage dress, or other such garment is considered by most people as bourgeois, and vintage clothing in general, whether authentic or reproductions, tend to command hefty prices most people can’t afford as a regular expense, assuming they are created by people who are paid enough (that’s leaving out material and sustainability concerns, which raise the price further).
Sure, you can find vintage clothes and styles if you have time to scout eBay and your local thrift stores and estate sales all the time, but even then you’d be spending more than a modern outfit from Walmart, and you’re suffering an immense opportunity cost. Not feasible for people who are impoverished.
So then if it’s mostly the middle class who can afford this fashion in the first place, what’s the judgement on clothes of the middle class from history? Most of the time, the middle class, while not themselves bourgeois, had access to the same institutions, resources, and clothes that higher class individuals outside of the super wealthy had access to. For example, the poor would have never been invited to a white tie affair, but it might be something a middle class family had experience with. That same family would have benefited to a greater degree from slavery and colonialism than the poor. The middle class has also had a large part in revolutionary activity, since they are still part of the working class, just better off.
All in all, good video, I think that it has good political use to dress like radicals of old, but that we can also envision a future where class divide originating in clothing is behind us, and people can wear what they want, so long as us modern progressives are clear with our intentions and values. After all, the upper class has been casualizing since Victorian times when traditional peasant fabrics like tweed and tartan were co-opted along with the romanticization of the country side and whatnot. Modern billionaires deliberately wear casual clothing to send a message, we might do the same by contradicting them the same way punks have co-opted the aesthetics of Facism to push radical ideas and force fascists to alter their own aesthetics.
Wow, this really hit me. I am a union steamfitter, and both in my work cloths and in my nonwork cloths i try to be purposefully and wear cloths that look well and age in a way that i find esthetically pleasing. I do see it as a way to concent to the labor radicals of the past and havr found it as a useful way to concent to the current radicals still out there on the jobsite today. I havent seen anyone else explain it in such an eloquent way
Just discovered your channel. What a surprise and a treasure! I also did not expect to hear "as-salam alaykum comrades" - more power to you! I have been a longtime student of the Soviet avant-garde and I really appreciated your showing that aspect of design. I deeply respect what you're doing here and I would LOVE to see you do a video essay on what is... or what Revolutionary aesthetic could/should be? When I was in Shanghai I had a lovely friend who was a member of the CCP (she specialized in Marxist research) and we had some fascinating talks about what role aesthetics and the arts could play in society that would be consistent with the goals of Marx without succumbing to bourgeoisie conspicuous consumption.
I dress like a 1950s housewife who organizes her workplace with the IWW (I’m a proud Wobbly so it fits)
I Discovered the channel with that video, And as a communist (As 99% of subscribers), i became addicted in all videos about topics that i never found videos about, like Abraham Lincoln brigade and your work in combat fake-news about communism and the soviet experience in general.
With comradeship, From a member of the Brazilian Popular Unity.
This video reaches me at the height of a desperate, desperate fashion inspo drought. Thanks for this! I will be doing plenty of research and would love to see anything else you put out on historical working class fashion.
Loved this video! I have definitely come across that expression "vintage fashion, not vintage values" and I have never reached the realization of how vague and politically fragile it is. I love this better, more aligned with my political and social views! And not only that, most importantly this video made me think how much my research into vintage fashion has been uncounciously dictated by mostly US and more generaly western fashion trends that not always were aimed to be worn by working class people, even though I have strong opinions against so-called "haute culture" brands that are actually luxury brands (that a lot of times don't present clothing that should be considered high fashion, i.e. made with special attention to the quality and the making of the clothing, from design to the finishing details) and the whole season oriented consumist capitalist fashion culture.
But, now that you've brought this to my attetion, I do recognize that the parts of researching vintage fashion that ignite my interest the most are the ones when I find some link between the material and superstrutural conditions of a society and how that influences the making of the clothing that working class people would wear on their everyday lives. I will definitely keep it mind the symbolism and the political & historical context of the pieces of clothing and the people who wore it when doing my vintage fashion research, sewing, making, thrifting and wearing from now on. Thank you so much for making this video!
I need me one of those leather jackets. Those are proof that you can be class-conscious and look snazzy at the same time.
If only they weren't so expensive.
Now, I'm not a Communist, but I agree with everything you've said in this video. I live this way in my fashion journey, and I hope I can continue to do so. My views are certainly "radical" lol. I represent my own people and their struggles against oppressors thru all history.
new fan from sudan.🌹
Oh my mummified Lenin! This is gold dust! Thank you form making this! Yes! I would like to see a video about female military uniforms from the Great Patriotic War! Amazing work, please keep up!
This video made me happy to represent my class in my clothes, because the saying notion of "being fashionable" is to imitate the rich, which has always caused me strangeness.
OMG, I am so glad that I stumbled over your channel. Exactly what I have been thinking for most of my life.
Great video, I love your fashion and values!!!
You have NO IDEA how glad I am I the algorithm send you my way!!!
This needs a entire chapter concerning fashion during the stalin govt and onwards
Stalin himself had drip. You should take a look at his white Great Marshall uniform, that man had style.
*I AM WEARING MY BEST PROLATERIAT* historical clothing today - having watched your video yesterday, I made the effort...!!! 😀
I continue to love your work and all you do
Amazing video Lady Izdihar! I haven't thought about fashion in this way before so thank you!
How does this video has less than 100k views? That's super interesting!
Might be too niche of a topic 😄
so glad to have found your channel! i love vintage fashion and history, but us-centricness of it really sucks. i personally like 1920s fashion, but so much of it irks me with is consumerist nature, especially when looking at old magazines from the us and UK.
The best vintage channel ever! ❤
Mayakovsky is a great example of vintage fashion, radical values, I like to think he's something of an inspiration for how I dress.
I think the problem is that a lot of big name vintage fashion/historical costuming influencers ARE the same class as the coal barons and servant havers. If they were dressing up in working class vintage, it would be class cosplay.
A fair point. Interestingly in real life, everyone I know who's into vintage fashion, myself included, mainly got into it because they grew up only able to shop at thrift stores. So you build a love for old styles.
Just discovered your channel! Super cool! This is so awesome, really cool to see this kind of combination of working class politics and the common human experiances of clothing and life. Looking forward to more, thank you comrade!
Yes to everything you said at the end
I always have veeery mixed feelings when I see collections of soviet medals. They are not just some random objects, they were given to specific people for specific achievements. So as for me other people kinda don't have moral right to posess these medals. And also a lot of these medals were sold by their owners during 90s because of extreme financial circumstances. My father's relatives were about to sell medals of their grandfather because of tough conditions. Fortunately, my father had some money at the momen, so he helped them and convinced not to sell grandfather's memory. And I understand that collectors have nothing to do with it, and it would be worse for these people who had sold their awards, if no one was buying. But still. These collections are extremely controversial subject for me.
Sure I agree, medals are very different from commemorative pins however.
@@LadyIzdihar of course, pins like baby Lenin are different thing) my comment is only about medals
I'm a socialist who love vintage clothing but also hiphop and streetwear so i try to kind of blend all my interests in my own way
In Saint-Petersburg I still live in a vintage flat! My wallpapers are in stile of 1950ss
That's a shame, it is the worst era of design here in eastern europe.
@@greyfells2829 I don't think so. 50s were great in terms of stile, compere to minimalist 60s, or God forbit, brutalist 70s
gotta love an izdihar upload
More anti bourgeois content please :D
But seriously I really enjoyed the perspective in this video, something I've only ever "felt" subconsciously without really thinking about it. Thank you!
Great video, a really perspective on vintage fashion
Thanks so much!
Really Interesting video, I've used the phrase "Vintage Fashion, not vintage values" a lot but I think Radical Values is a much better term. I like to dress more working class when it comes to 20th century, but I admit I do prefer the bourgeoisie fashions of the 17th century.
This video is the first one I've seen from you, and I'm glad I did.
You have me reflecting on how my increasingly Marxist leanings relate not just to my vintage clothes but my style in general. The bourgeois are always portrayed as the standard for clothing, to the point where when I try to wear more modest and utilitarian clothing my family members think it's too much so. It's like you can't afford to not look bourgeois in the U.S. without eventually looking weird. We working class are always expected to put on a face, especially in formal situations, to essentially cater to the "bourgeois gaze."
But of course this isn't an excuse for myself, because I am just as culpable of mimicking bourgeois status in my everyday style here and there. My vintage collection is thankfully still very modest both in size and in content, and I still have a taste for utilitarianism over shoddy bourgeois mimicry. Hopefully this stays that way now that I have watched this video.
"Most of us are one miss paycheck away from houselessnes".....it was said...!!!
That's such a great topic! Fashion is a powerful tool when imparting proletariat ideology. Great job, Lady Izdihar, I love your videos
Question for you: were gloves popular in the USSR? I am not talking about practical winter gloves to keep warm but fashion gloves, mostly for women. What about that? Were they popular amongst women?
Greetings from Brazil comrades, let's unite!
Most definitely let's unite
This was great! Definitely do more like this. About to go buy a flat cap 😂
Thanks for your video! Wonderful! I try to make my own clothing, am inspired to let my values shape them !
Loved the analysis comrade! Please do more videos like this!
I’ve never thought much about fashion until recently, and I have recently gotten into military surplus, especially vintage surplus (60s era US surplus and East German is my favorite) It’s practical, durable and can be styled with my band shirts, I can take it to work and camping.
As you might guess, this specific hobby is infested by right wingers. But that doesn’t mean that those are my values. If anything, I feel wearing old military surplus is a form of rebellion against conformity.
Ohhhh this was such a great video !!!!
it’s funny when you mentioned people ask if their pin of baby Lenin is you’re relative. i have a photograph of Lenin on my wall and multiple times have asked if that was my grandpa and usually yes. since he is a grandfather to us all in a way
Reminded me of those Soviet debates on whether or not jeans should be allowed, given that they were American (this was during the Cold War period, mind), but also workers' clothing (at least originally). Also, of the debate on women's undergarments.
DEAR LORD.... I'm in love
Back the fuck off, I saw her first.
Stop being weird you two!
@@rando3939 can't comrade I'm down bad
This was wildly interesting thanks for the video
Now that I realize, this is so true. I mean, I was born in Venezuela and in my experience, interestingly, and precisely my style is always fully based on the early 1980s fashion to 1950s fashion (the 1950s was the beginning of a golden age for Venezuela, and on the black Friday of 1983 Venezuela's economy got stuck for the first time after its golden age). Since I was a child, my parents taught me about how good their lives were back then, and how the country seemed to reach a prosperity never seen before, because there was money and lots of opportunities. I guess clothing is my way to always bring with me this culture of prosperity that once made of Venezuela a recognized place in the world. "It is nostalgia of what it used to be and how it would have been to be there and live it".
On the other hand, one day I had to dress up like a naz1 for a class and I fell in love with naz1 fashion, I felt like I could have worn that every single day, even though I don't feel any related to that ideology whatsoever. I also really loved all of the soviet outfits I saw on this video; I would definitely wear them even if my ideology is totally contrary to communism.
PD: I think it is awesome to see actual radical people showing their ideas and opinions without being afraid, that's what freedom of speech is about, and it is absolutely wonderful to learn about other people's perspectives and points of view.
i had to skip the wendeys commercial lol. i couldnt bear it
Funny because at one point Czechoslovakia and the GDR produced jeans and bathing suits that you couldn’t easily get in other Warsaw Pact countries. So, for example, Soviet and Bulgarian citizens would exchange their orthodox icons and other valuable household items for said jeans and bathing suits with Czechoslovak and German tourists. I know because I have a Bulgarian icon at home.
The Wendy’s commercial is over the top but it essentially tells the truth. Desirable clothing items were at points very hard to get so you had to make do with whatever was available. Replicating “Soviet fashion” via American vintage shops in 2024 is a lot easier.
Great video. Could you explain why Che chose the beret though? You said it was a very intentional choice on his part, but what context was he referencing. If this video does well you should do one on some of the older fashion symbols of radicals, like the Phrygian Cap and Sans Culottes.