Reflection 41 – Clothing, Branding, and Modern-Day Slavery

I will begin this reflection by a DISCLAIMER: I am not writing this to point fingers at anyone as I myself am deeply guilty of that attitude. Fair enough? So, here we go .
Let us take a tour into our closets, and take a close look at our shirts, pants, skirts, dresses, jackets, shoes, bags! How much of our stuff is a brand? How much is foreign vs. local? For some of us reading this, a big percentage of our stuff (if not all) is branded. And for some others who can’t afford the high prices of such brands, they typically end up buying fake stuff for the same brands! So why are we so attached to brands? Do we get our self-worth by wearing specific brands? Do we earn people’s respect by doing so? Let me tell you what I think. But before that a quick backdrop from my dear Nouman Ali Khan.
He says that one of the most celebrated ideas in the West is freedom! Freedom of speech, religion, press… You name it! But are people really free to do whatever they want?! He gave an interesting example for clothes. As a teenager in a US public high school (and for that regard, anywhere in the world) you are (indirectly) forced to wear like others with whom you want to be associated with. For example, those into Hip-hop will wear certain clothes and those into other groups will do the same so on. Without even realizing, most of us are giving in to certain societal norms and trends when we make our choices. We are usually locked up in various birdcages while enjoying it very much. Given that the world is overly globalizing, they are no more certain societal norms but rather global ones. Multinational companies are making fortunes from our wallets by simply manipulating our minds and hearts to the extent that we rarely question such things. Of course, some of us could argue that these are high-quality stuff or that there are no other viable alternatives. And definitely there is a sense of truth in both arguments to some extent! But personally, I am not totally convinced .
For me, I see it as a form of modern-day slavery. Although it seems we have tons of options to choose from, they all work in parallel. They all chain us and restrict our real choices available for us. We are not REALLY free to think or dress in any way we want. Most of us can‘t break free from the MATRIX (I guess Keanu Reeves had it all laid out for us since more than two decades ). I believe this is a blunt form of modern-day slavery. Rather than whips and sticks, we are enslaved by our minds. And I believe one of the main tactics being applied to us has to do with our constant need to be verified from others; we are too much too often concerned with how people perceive us! And that is why I actually find Islam as a liberating ideology. This big chunk of always trying to satisfy people is basically disrupted! One’s attention should entirely and wholeheartedly be geared towards pleasing Allah be it through actions, words, and even clothing! The more we get attached to Allah, the less we should be concerned with how people perceive us, and therefore the more freedom we have in our everyday life choices! However, it is easier said than done .