If representations matter, they are never an end, but simply a means towards inclusion and equal rights. This is what Trans Visibility Week, which started on March 27 and culminated with the ” Trans day of visibility “, or the international day of visibility of trans people, celebrated every year on March 31st. The day before her, the singer Lizzo launched within her lingerie brand Yitty, a range designed to particularly appeal to trans people, called ” Your skin “.
Lizzo’s Yitty brand launches its ‘Your Skin’ range designed for trans people
This includes in particular binders (a sort of bra that allows you to compress the chest so as to erase it under clothes), as well as thongs designed for tucking (i.e. that allow you to disguise a penis). This is how the Yitty brand presents its new range” Your skin » :
“We believe in radical self-love for people of all gender identities, including trans, non-binary, fluid, and gender non-conforming (GNC) communities. Communities that have been perpetually abused. »
At first glance, we can therefore be delighted that a brand worn by a celebrity so representative of self-respect and efforts to be inclusive in fashion can offer such products. Benefiting from two years of research and development and know-how in terms of shapewear by Yitty, will be available from summer 2023 in a wide range of sizes (definitely from XS to 6XL, as for the brand’s other underwear).
Has Lizzo’s Yitty branding taken the place of Urbody’s gender-affirming designs?
Only that the good news was quickly followed by controversy, as reported by the media fashionista. Artist Zackary Trucker tweeted that Yitty would order products from the Urbody brand (specializing in lingerie from 2021 gender statement). This is what led the latter to contact the Lizzo brand to get to know her, only to discover that she was preparing a similar line. Zackary Trucker complains about itno trans people appeared to be present at their meeting. And to conclude:
“It was only today, when you announced #YourSkin (a line developed from Urbody’s R&D projects), that Urbody was hired as a consultant to help drive the success of the brand. by Lizzo. »
“Take advantage of our community’s hard work without proper recognition or partnership”
Zackary Trucker’s postulate was quickly picked up by the Urbody brand. She claims that Yitty ordered her chest compression underwear for the first time (binder) in April 2022. Urbody would later propose a meeting to share his expertise on the matter. An invitation left a dead letter.
Then Yitty reportedly placed a second order in early 2023, this time for underwear from tucking. Urbody would then re-propose a meeting, as she explains in a statement (shared on Twitter and then on Instagram) that she tells the extent of her disappointment:
“We wrote to them about our history and the heart and soul we put into building our business in partnership with other trans people and our sincere hope that a big brand isn’t trying to capitalize on the hard work of our community without proper recognition or partnership.
When we finally had a meeting to discuss their line, we expected to see our community represented on the team, but that was not the case.
After that meeting, we repeatedly came up with ways to collaborate but were largely ignored., even though Yitty’s team previously shared that the vision of the trans community was a gap for them and a key learning opportunity. »
Capitalize on trans people, without trans people?
And for this Urbody explains today that he has been taken advantage of, given the similarity between his designs and Yitty’s novelties. :
” While large companies continue to enter the LGBTQ+ (and especially trans/non-binary) market as an opportunity for growthWe are increasingly concerned that these commercial efforts are being made without properly targeting and compensating our community. »
In other words, Yitty would capitalize on trans people, not include them as experts, just picking a few for cute pictures. Another example of facade diversity that serves to hide a cruel lack of inclusion, even a case of dispossession and obvious exclusion. What could it be called socialwashing : maintain internal practices that contradict the progressive discourse shown to the general public.
Will Lizzo undo the damage her trademark Yitty allegedly did to Urbody?
But does this match Lizzo’s values? Surely not. And for this Urbody thinks (officially) that the singer was unaware of the dirty underbelly of this storyand therefore wishes to inform you in the hope that it will correct the situation:
“We believe Yitty has achieved a lot, from platform amplification of Lizzo to prioritizing size diversity, which makes it all the more disappointing to see this opportunity undermined by our experience.
We admire Lizzo and how she has been an advocate for inclusion, and think she would be empathetic and aligned with us if she knew about this story.
We want to bring the matter to your attention. And most importantly, we want to stand up for trans, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming people everywhere. They deserve better. »
So far, neither Yitty nor Lizzo have responded to Urbody’s allegations. But given the singer’s responsiveness to the rare times she’s been challenged on social justice issues, it’s a safe bet that she’ll be able to undo the damage her branding would have caused before the range’s official release. gender statement “Your skin” scheduled for summer 2023.
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
