Dear Vintage Community

I've been pondering typing out this post because I've had a million thoughts whirling around in my head like pinballs and it didn't just start during quarantine or after discovering the untimely death of George Floyd or Breonna Taylor. These thoughts have been in my head since I first had to say the Pledge of Allegiance. Since my first encounter with a racist police officer. Since I discovered that as a young black girl whose family was born on American soil, I had no idea how to complete a family tree because there are no traces of most slaves. I keep my posts light because I also feel that black people often carry the burden of trying to teach others our oppressed history, systemic racism, and the struggles of being black in this world. There is black joy. There is rich black history. There is black fashion, specifically black vintage fashion. And I want to share those small joys with you.

But lately I've seen and experienced things within the vintage community that have both disgusted and puzzled me. And while I do not have a huge platform or thousands of followers, I thought I'd write an open letter to the vintage community. You can take what you want from it, but I feel that I need to get this off of my chest. Warning: This will be a wordier post than the norm!

Dear Vintage Community,

Recently due to the explosion of promoting black owned businesses, I've gained a larger following on Instagram and Depop. I just started Gal Friday Vintage shop and Instagram account at the start of quarantine so needless to say it's definitely been a change in my life having more followers. When I post my anguish, I am often met with many responses from a lot of my white (vintage) followers. Few I've had meaningful conversations with but most of the conversations have left me feeling like I have to defend myself or be burdened with someone else trying to release their guilt onto me and vent to me about THEIR problems. I posted the other day that I was making this post and received a message from a woman who rather she realized it or not downplayed my efforts stating something on the lines of "it's just vintage" and how she personally hasn't given vintage much thought given what all is going on. This message came from a white woman. Knowing that I shouldn't explain myself but feeling a bit upset I sent a long message back in response defending why this is so important to me.

As an African American woman whose family comes from Montgomery, Alabama, I virtually do not know anything about my lineage. There's not many family photographs even of my grandparents and great aunts and uncles who are still alive and with me today. Vintage is something that I stumbled upon by chance. As many of you know, one day I watched Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) a film starring one of my biggest inspirations Audrey Hepburn, a white woman and thus I was swept into the world of 1920s - 70s glamour, clothing, hair and beauty, home decor, etc. At the time I first fell in love with these films, Turner Classic Movies rarely showed a black film. I did not know of Ethel Waters, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Hattie McDaniel, Theresa Harris or Harry Belafonte. And then one day I watched Carmen Jones (1954) for the first time. A 1950s film with black actors starring one of the finest of them all, Dorothy Dandridge. She was able to be a STAR in that film in her fine costumes and jewelry. She was able to KISS Harry Belafonte which was taboo at the time. When I found out she was from my hometown, Cleveland, Ohio, I instantly felt this connection to her. And I was HUNGRY for more.

I poured myself over as many black films as I could find. And then music. And then dancing. And then plays. And then TV shows. And then I realized I was really trying to feel connected to my OWN history. And so it's not "just vintage," it is HISTORY. And much like the history taught in schools, the vintage community attempts to erase black people in history. I follow many accounts and blogs on various social media platforms ran by white women who post about vintage and old films or run businesses that center around vintage (clothing shops, retro hair/wigs, etc). They virtually never post any black stars from the past or every day black people from past eras let alone any person of color. Their accounts are whitewashed filled with glorious technicolor images of Rita Hayworth, Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe, Cary Grant, and Clark Gable. Yet now due to the current climate there is this PUSH to post photographs of Cicely Tyson, Pam Grier, Lena Horne, Sammy Davis Jr. and Sidney Poitier. It feels disingenuous and patronizing even.

This push to post more is juxtaposed with their own inherent racism. I've seen white women/men telling black women/men that they are "appropriating culture" by wearing period pieces as if black women/men did not exist in the past. Or there is expressed disbelief that a black person can even partake in this lifestyle. A prime example is of Paula Statton, a black woman known on Instagram as @hillhousevintage whom posts the prettiest cottage core posts of her beautiful home in England. She was recently criticized by a white woman accusing her of showcasing a fantasy and not being "real." Because apparently a black woman who lives in a beautiful cottage home, dresses in retro clothing, drinks tea, and gardens is not real.

I've seen many white women in the vintage community expressing this desire to "learn" about racism and about their privilege. Recently a woman I've followed for years who runs a hair salon and wig shop doing retro hairstyles has posted several pictures of black women and has even called for a movement and petition in the hairstyling community to provide education for styling textured hair. In all of the years that I've followed this woman, she has rarely posted any black person on her page let alone person of color whom she's styled. She rarely posted even inspirational images. All of her photographs are usually of white women she's styled, white stars or vintage photographs of white women and men. A black woman questioned her intentions and was met by extreme criticism from a very well known white woman in the vintage community. She berated this woman claiming that she was unkind and unfair. Reading her comments infuriated me because she not only invalidated a black woman but placed upon her the angry black woman trope so often used on black women when we express our opinion unapologetically.

Seeing what's been going on lately has really hit home for me that as a black woman who has a great love for vintage clothing, hair/beauty, films, music, dancing, etc., I have virtually never felt any connection to the vintage community as the community with or without realizing it is also whitewashing history and NOT taking accountability for it. I keep seeing the quote "Vintage style not vintage values," but pretending like the past was just a world of white people IS vintage values because that is a repeat of what was done in the past. Maybe part of the problem is, to post a star like say Eartha Kitt, you would then have to acknowledge that she was blacklisted from the entertainment world by Lady Bird Johnson due to systemic racism. Or perhaps that grandmother or great aunt that you always post vintage photographs about on your social media feed is a racist whom you always give passes to and therefor subconsciously you never feel comfortable posting someone outside of your race on your feed or watching a film from the past that isn't covered with white faces except for the occasional confused black butler or sassy black maid. Or maybe you are just blissfully unaware that you are assisting with perpetuating the myth that vintage is white culture. Your favorite movie is Gone With the Wind (1939). You give Brigitte Bardot and John Wayne passes even though you know they are awful people who have openly expressed their racist views. You are a part of the problem. And it's not going to go away just because NOW you decide to fill your timeline with black faces.

History is so important because erasure of black history is the fuel in systemic racism. It is not "just vintage" when even film restoration for black films is difficult because much of black films from the past were destroyed due to racism. There's a fight to preserve black historical landmarks that are deemed "culturally unimportant" or "not of value." Stories of important black figures of the past are retold inaccurately or ignored.

I guess I'm typing this post to the vintage community because I feel compelled to. This maybe a bit disjointed and not the most articulate piece ever written, but these are my thoughts and feelings. Take what you will from it. And remember this love we all have for vintage clothing, old films and music, home decor, etc. is HISTORY and it is a lot heavier and darker than we make it seem.

Sincerely,

Melody Walker

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE PHOTOGRAPHS IN THIS POST.