First lady's $6800 jacket: Judging Michelle Obama's Olympic style keeps us trapped in the closet over class
OPINION - The first lady’s closet represents the vastness of America’s fashion appetites, plus its multi-tiered class system — and as a result, the country’s economic identity crisis...
It seems that first lady Michelle Obama cannot win. She is either too posh, too plain, or to be taken to task for the state of international clothing manufacturing. Constantly batted between the poles that label her either an out-of-touch Marie Antoinette or an unfit representative of America, it bears noting that the collective’s fascination with Michelle Obama’s clothing only confirms her uniquely iconic status, and her importance as a factor in the coming presidential election.
Just as Jackie Kennedy’s pillbox-hat-wearing panache captured the public’s imagination in the Camelot era, which proved to be an advantage to her husband, Michelle Obama — with her 66 percent approval rating — is a priceless asset in President Obama’s reelection bid. Fashion industry titans like Anna Wintour, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Donna Karan clamor to fundraise for the Obamas, specifically citing Michelle Obama’s effortlessly cool personification of a designer-fluent, committed mother as one reason they are enamored with the first couple.
The opposite is true of Ann Romney with respect to the fashion industry. Just as Romney does not announce the labels she wears, designers are not eager to shout out her connection with them either. Tellingly, when she was critiqued for wearing the Reed Krakoff bird blouse, a rep for the designer quickly issued the distancing statement: “We had nothing to do with it… She must have bought it from Saks or Bergdorf’s, we definitely didn’t send it to her. [W]e 100 percent didn’t send it to her.”
With this type of relationship to the fashion world, Ann Romney’s choice of designers might remain a secret as tightly held as the contents of Mitt’s tax returns.
Yet, the role of fashion and style isn’t something only the wives of the presidential hopefuls are contending with. On the campaign trail, both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama are forgoing neckties, cuffing up their shirtsleeves, and choosing ill-fitting “soccer Dad” jeans in an effort to appear more like the “every man” they hope will vote for them. With the election less than 100 days away, and the projected race so tight, even the men understand how important it is to communicate the idea that they will represent all Americans and not just a select few — through their outfits.
But perhaps more than any other player in the election, Michelle Obama understands the power of personal appearance most intimately. Four years of navigating the intense scrutiny of her fashion choices has given the first lady a shrewd ability to reach across the aisle — as it were — without presenting a false image of herself. She wears cute, inexpensive clothing for everyday occasions, and breaks out her best for high-profile events — just like every other American woman — within her budget.
And Michelle’s budget reflects what she and her husband, who both hail from humble beginnings, have earned through the power of the American spirit. It’s a fact that the Ivy League-educated former attorney and one-time hospital executive became successful before becoming first lady through her own hard work and determination. Her family wealth has grown with the president’s increasing book sales. Michelle’s fabulous wardrobe was bought with the resulting royalties, unlike the practices of Romney’s Bain Capital, which has been involved in outsourcing American jobs.
To judge Michelle Obama’s occasional choice of expensive clothing items is to disparage the American values — and supportive education policies — that helped place them within her reach.
But whether Mrs. O wears a Sophie Theallet dress to visit a children’s hospital in Ghana, or treks in Lanvin sneakers to serve others at a D.C. Food Bank, her wealth does not distance the first lady from those who can’t afford the pricier pieces in her closet. In fact, quite the opposite. Michelle Obama’s style embodies the ability to achieve one’s best, look one’s best, and feel one’s best without forgetting those who need help on the way to becoming their best.
Isn’t that what being American is all about?
Follow Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond on Twitter at @nanaekua
