Clothing, Countries, Orlan, and the Other

1. Stretch pants, made in USA
2. White T-Shirt, made in Brazil
3. Underwear, made in Cambodia
4. Bra, made in the Philippines
5. Running shorts, made in Mexico
6. Bathing suit, made in China
7. Dress, made in USA
8. Sweater, made in China
9. Nice top, made in USA
10. Bathrobe, made in China


Linkages. Well, just by reading where the items were made, not too much is known exactly about what the people are like who made them, how they were treated, and how they are viewed in relation to each other and to the rest of the working world.
I have a rough imagination of what the conditions must have been like to make the running shorts in Mexico as I have read and seen some documentaries about Maquiladoras. But in relation to Orlan’s "self-hybridization" project, I would say the same, “lowest tier” of people whose job it is to do such tedious, manual labor, are the same people depicted in Orland art. They are the other: the people who are official seen as people but unofficially not treated as people but as subhuman. By being seen as subhuman, they are able to be treated with such unsatisfactory standards and no questions are asked. But sometimes questions are asked. I didn’t list the first 10 items of clothing I found because almost half of them were made in USA. I was not shocked by this, as I make a conscious effort to buy clothing made in USA—expecting that the working conditions are better so as that the people who make them are treated as real people and not subhuman. But at the same time, most clothing is not manufactured in USA and the conditions are not good. Until all people are treated with respect and are not forced to work or live in horrible conditions, we will not be past the perceived historical event of putting down the “other.”