How Fashion Can Heal
- Emma Glascock
- Nov 10, 2024
- 4 min read
Indigenous Women Reclaim Their Culture Through Fashion
By: Emma Glascock and Tess Pawliw
Indigenous culture is beautifully holistic, connected to nature, and rooted in thousands of years of tradition. But has it remained the same? The attempted demolition of Indigenous culture by colonization took so much from these vibrant communities. They were robbed of their homes, land, language, safety, resources, and of their fashion. For any artist, their cultural background plays a large role in their art. Debra Sparrow and Fallon Farinacci walk us through how they reclaim their culture through fashion, design and their careers.
Salish designer Debra Sparrow was born and raised on the Musqueam Indian Reserve, preferably referred to as a Village, in Vancouver British Columbia. “I didn’t grow up learning about Salish design, clothing or anything - it was completely gone,” Sparrow said. Elaborating that the change of society, effects of residential schools, and everything before them, had caused the disappearance of their culture's natural beauty. When visiting friends in Northern areas of Canada, Sparrow was shown the cultural clothing and regalia specific to their culture. Seeing this sparked interest in learning about her own cultural fashions, worn by the Musqueam Peoples. Beginning as a jeweler, Sparrow created her pieces with the art of utilitarianism in mind. Later moving onto textile work, learning to weave in traditional Salish patterns with a group of women from her village. “We had no teachers, nobody connected. So we felt really strongly we were connecting directly with our history and ancestors,” Sparrow said.
Later on, Sparrow and her team were approached by Nike. This was in request to design the mens and womens hockey jerseys for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. Bringing elements from Indigenous and Canadian culture together to represent our country on the international stage.
“I think that pre-colonization, everybody all around the world was already creating the beauty of their history - and they took that part away, I’m on a journey back to then,” Sparrow says.
“What if” , Fallon Farinacci says, “How much does assimilation affect someone, how much trauma, how much removing someone from their community, how much does it affect them? Would my personality be the same? Would I dress the same than I do now?”
She calls me from her home adorned in vintage brass, strikingly opposed to the memory of her parents “bohemian and hippy” style. Fallon Farinacci, spirit name White Thunder Woman, is a speaker, writer, survivor, and fierce advocate for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. At the age of nine, Fallon was ripped away from her tight-knit Metis community in the Treaty one area of Manitoba. This happened after both her mother and father were murdered in her family home, while Farinacci and her siblings were held hostage by her mother's stalker. A truly incomprehensible trauma.
Farinacci had already been speaking and sharing her family’s story, however, in 2021, after being the first in her family to turn 38, she started a fundraiser online for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. Through this, Farinacci gained a substantial online following, using her platform to advocate for systemic change and bringing awareness to the many ways Indigenous peoples and families, including her own, have been failed.
Farinacci’s online presence has given her the opportunity to work with many popular brands, but one resonates differently with her. Poppy & Peonies is a Métis, female-founded Canadian accessory brand. Working with Poppy & Peonies, Fallon released a collection inspired by her family and memories created with them.
The Heart Berry Handbag (available again for purchase this holiday season) was inspired by the heart berry, or what many know as strawberry. A favorite candy of her father and eldest brother, were the red and green foil wrapped strawberry hard candies. The handbag is lined in a strawberry print fabric, paying homage to the favorite
treat of the two. The body of the handbag was modeled after one of her mother’s most-worn purses in the 80’s. Same as “I wanted to be able to incorporate all of them, and have a piece that had something to do with all of them… it was an ode to my family's story,” Farinacci says.
She details how she has been incorporating traditional Indigenous garments and accessories, such as ribbon skirts, sashes, and beadwork, in what she refers as a “modern way”.
Wearing a pantsuit, paired with beaded earrings, and moccasins from brands like Bastien Industries. Fallon says she can feel the reclamation of her culture's fashion through the ability to incorporate it into her own personal style.
These women show resilience and give an ode to their ancestors on the daily. Through fashion, they share their beautifully holistic culture with the world.
Canadian Indigenous Support:
-Canadian Women's Foundation https://canadianwomen.org/
-1-855-242-3310 24/7 Available Support For All Indigenous Peoples in Canada
-National Inquiry into Missing Indigenous Women and Girls https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1448633299414/1534526479029
-1-844-413-6649 24/7 Available for Emotional Support
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