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A political banner
Che’s face, advertisements for ballpoint pens or 1)Heineken beer, as an advertising medium, the T-shirt has recruited 2)proselytizers for 3)all manner of 4)causes, including the most sinister. This inexpensive white cotton surface, so easy to decorate oneself, is a blank page offered to freedom of expression.
In 1960, candidates for the presidential election in the United States were the first to use the white T-shirt as a campaign medium. Every possible kind of movement has made use of this blank—from the most community-minded causes to the most individualistic. Its fundamental simplicity makes it the perfect personal, portable 5)sandwich board capable of 6)getting across its “message of the day”. The world over—whether involved in protecting the environment, human rights, saving the whales, 7)you name it—T-shirts are an excellent means of identifying 8)kindred spirits. And, in the universal language of imagery, it bypasses language barriers to identify political struggles and polarities, that nowadays so quickly become global.
The American “Wanted: bin Laden” T-shirt is instantly countered by the Afghan Taliban’s T-shirt emblazoned with the face of Al Qaeda’s leader, triggering a silent dialogue through the intermediary of television. Thanks to the 9)ingeniousness and boldness, not to say 10)chutzpah of the person wearing it, the T-shirt weaves its way in front of camera lenses and delivers its message to millions of TV viewers without paying a cent.
Harbinger of a new world
In the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War combined to make the American dream falter. The 11)NAACP(National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) demonstrated, waving American flags and wearing T-shirts bearing the 12)acronym of the organization set up to defend the civil rights of African-American minority.
Whether proclaiming “Property of Utah Athletic Department” or “Harvard”, the institutional T-shirts of colleges and universities were no longer fashionable or profitable. Students of the 13)New Left, supporting progressive causes, preferred the seeming neutrality of plain T-shirts. Thus members of the 14)Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee wore T-shirts with jeans as a sign of solidarity with the exploited working classes. The other great event of the 1960s—the Vietnam War—would add further rifts and divides to those brought 15)to the fore by the 16) Civil Rights Movement. The 17)riposte of pacifist students to the patriotic slogan “My country, right or wrong” was “Make Love…Not War” and this phrase would be the cry of an entire generation.
In this tidal wave of liberalism, it was not long before women started to make themselves heard. After Women’s Lib, other feminist movements came along to demand equal rights for “the other half of huma-nity”. With many women financially independent, they had every intention of living free lives, in a climate of free love. Gone were the days of being tied down by marriage and, thanks in large part to the 18)pill, of having unwanted babies. And while T-shirts and jeans were becoming the symbols of the new 19)unisex phenomenon, feminist demonstrations were vying with one another to be the wittiest, most outrageous and provocative.
Just four days after the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the street vendors’ 20)stalls in Chinatown were offering $5 T-shirts either preaching vengeance—“Evil Will Be Punished”, or commemorating the event—“Never Forget the WTC”.
As a pure product of globalization, the T-shirt has shared its glories as well as its tensions. It’s worth remembering that in China T-shirts are manufactured for no more than 20 cents—a basic cost that accounts for just 0.5% of the final selling price and even less when importers pass off these exotic T-shirts as products “Made in the U.S.”. Yet it is indeed on this global instrument that anti-globalization activists express their complaints. In 21)Genoa, at the 2001 rallies against the 22)G8, many of the 50,000 demonstrators and protesters displayed on their chests: “You G8, Us 600,000,000” and “The world isn’t a commodity.”
政治旗帜
切·格瓦拉的面孔，圆珠笔或喜力啤酒的广告……它们都曾在T恤衫上出现过。作为一种广告媒介，T恤衫曾站在所有重大事件的前沿，其中不乏最险恶黑暗的大事。这种价格便宜的白色棉布面料谁穿都不难看，恰似为言论自由而准备的一张白纸。
1960年，美国总统候选人率先采用白色T恤衫作为竞选工具。当年，几乎所有的运动都用上了这种白衣——从最充满集体主义色彩，到最宣扬个人主义的运动，无一例外。T恤衫本身的简洁性，使它成为传达“时代精神”的个性化、便携式、挂在身上的最佳移动广告牌。在全世界，无论是环境保护者，人权主义者，还是鲸鱼保护以及你能想到的任何组织，风格鲜明的T恤是辨认同道中人的绝佳标识。此外，图像是世界性的语言，它跨越了语言的鸿沟，把各种政治斗争的主旨与两极分化的现象点明，因而在当今社会迅速成为世界潮流。
美国人的“通缉本·拉登”T恤衫一问世，阿富汗塔利班毫不示弱，也马上推出印有“基地”组织领导人头像的T恤衫，电视画面这一中间媒介促成了这场无声的语言交锋。暂且不说穿着这些T恤衫的人有多张狂，光是T恤衫内容的独特与大胆就足以吸引摄像机的镜头，它们分文不花就把信息传达给了电视机前的亿万观众。
新时代的先驱
上世纪60年代，民权运动和越南战争使美国梦开始破灭。美国全国有色人种协进会上街游行的时候，成员们挥舞着美国国旗，身穿印有该组织名称缩写的T恤衫，以弘扬他们维护非裔美国人这一少数族群的公民权利的宗旨。
曾经风靡一时的“犹他大学体育系财产”或“哈佛”等字样的高等院校T恤衫已经不再是时尚的标志，商家也无法再从中赢利。支持改革事业的新左派学生更偏向于象征中立的素色T恤，因此学生非暴力统一行动委员会的成员就身穿T恤衫加牛仔裤，以示与受剥削的工人阶级团结在一起。上世纪60年代的另一件大事——越南战争——使在民权运动中已经凸现的观点分歧变得更为显著。有人打出了爱国口号“无论其对错，祖国就是祖国”，和平主义学生反戈一击，喊出“要做爱，不要战争”，这成为整整一代人的心声。
在这股自由主义浪潮的推动下，妇女很快开始发出自己的声音。女权运动以后，其他的妇女运动也接踵而来，要为“另一半的人类”争取平等的权利。随着众多女性经济上日渐独立，她们要求在自由性爱的大环境下享受自主的生活。妇女为婚姻以及意外怀孕所束缚的日子已经一去不返了——第二种束缚的解除，很大程度上是归功于避孕药的问世。T恤与牛仔裤的搭配成为新出现的中性现象穿着的象征，女权运动的示威口号一个比一个睿智、大胆与激动人心。
纽约的世贸中心在9·11袭击中轰然坍塌，四天后，唐人街的小商贩们的货摊上就推出了5美元一件的T恤衫，上面印着或鼓吹复仇的“罪恶终将受到惩罚”或铭记事件的“毋忘世贸中心”字样。
作为一个完全因全球化而出现的产品，T恤衫既有光彩的一面，也有灰暗的一面。值得留意的是，在中国，T恤衫的原始成本不超过20美分，仅为最终售价的0.5%，如果进口商在这些源自中国的产品上贴上“美国制造”的标签，那么零售价将更高。然而，反对全球化的活跃人士正是利用这种全球性的工具，表达了他们的不满。2001年在热那亚的反对八国集团的集会中，五万名示威游行者中的许多人都身着T恤，上面写着“你们八国，我们6亿人”，以及“世界不是一件商品”。
Che’s face, advertisements for ballpoint pens or 1)Heineken beer, as an advertising medium, the T-shirt has recruited 2)proselytizers for 3)all manner of 4)causes, including the most sinister. This inexpensive white cotton surface, so easy to decorate oneself, is a blank page offered to freedom of expression.
In 1960, candidates for the presidential election in the United States were the first to use the white T-shirt as a campaign medium. Every possible kind of movement has made use of this blank—from the most community-minded causes to the most individualistic. Its fundamental simplicity makes it the perfect personal, portable 5)sandwich board capable of 6)getting across its “message of the day”. The world over—whether involved in protecting the environment, human rights, saving the whales, 7)you name it—T-shirts are an excellent means of identifying 8)kindred spirits. And, in the universal language of imagery, it bypasses language barriers to identify political struggles and polarities, that nowadays so quickly become global.
The American “Wanted: bin Laden” T-shirt is instantly countered by the Afghan Taliban’s T-shirt emblazoned with the face of Al Qaeda’s leader, triggering a silent dialogue through the intermediary of television. Thanks to the 9)ingeniousness and boldness, not to say 10)chutzpah of the person wearing it, the T-shirt weaves its way in front of camera lenses and delivers its message to millions of TV viewers without paying a cent.
Harbinger of a new world
In the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War combined to make the American dream falter. The 11)NAACP(National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) demonstrated, waving American flags and wearing T-shirts bearing the 12)acronym of the organization set up to defend the civil rights of African-American minority.
Whether proclaiming “Property of Utah Athletic Department” or “Harvard”, the institutional T-shirts of colleges and universities were no longer fashionable or profitable. Students of the 13)New Left, supporting progressive causes, preferred the seeming neutrality of plain T-shirts. Thus members of the 14)Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee wore T-shirts with jeans as a sign of solidarity with the exploited working classes. The other great event of the 1960s—the Vietnam War—would add further rifts and divides to those brought 15)to the fore by the 16) Civil Rights Movement. The 17)riposte of pacifist students to the patriotic slogan “My country, right or wrong” was “Make Love…Not War” and this phrase would be the cry of an entire generation.
In this tidal wave of liberalism, it was not long before women started to make themselves heard. After Women’s Lib, other feminist movements came along to demand equal rights for “the other half of huma-nity”. With many women financially independent, they had every intention of living free lives, in a climate of free love. Gone were the days of being tied down by marriage and, thanks in large part to the 18)pill, of having unwanted babies. And while T-shirts and jeans were becoming the symbols of the new 19)unisex phenomenon, feminist demonstrations were vying with one another to be the wittiest, most outrageous and provocative.
Just four days after the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the street vendors’ 20)stalls in Chinatown were offering $5 T-shirts either preaching vengeance—“Evil Will Be Punished”, or commemorating the event—“Never Forget the WTC”.
As a pure product of globalization, the T-shirt has shared its glories as well as its tensions. It’s worth remembering that in China T-shirts are manufactured for no more than 20 cents—a basic cost that accounts for just 0.5% of the final selling price and even less when importers pass off these exotic T-shirts as products “Made in the U.S.”. Yet it is indeed on this global instrument that anti-globalization activists express their complaints. In 21)Genoa, at the 2001 rallies against the 22)G8, many of the 50,000 demonstrators and protesters displayed on their chests: “You G8, Us 600,000,000” and “The world isn’t a commodity.”
政治旗帜
切·格瓦拉的面孔，圆珠笔或喜力啤酒的广告……它们都曾在T恤衫上出现过。作为一种广告媒介，T恤衫曾站在所有重大事件的前沿，其中不乏最险恶黑暗的大事。这种价格便宜的白色棉布面料谁穿都不难看，恰似为言论自由而准备的一张白纸。
1960年，美国总统候选人率先采用白色T恤衫作为竞选工具。当年，几乎所有的运动都用上了这种白衣——从最充满集体主义色彩，到最宣扬个人主义的运动，无一例外。T恤衫本身的简洁性，使它成为传达“时代精神”的个性化、便携式、挂在身上的最佳移动广告牌。在全世界，无论是环境保护者，人权主义者，还是鲸鱼保护以及你能想到的任何组织，风格鲜明的T恤是辨认同道中人的绝佳标识。此外，图像是世界性的语言，它跨越了语言的鸿沟，把各种政治斗争的主旨与两极分化的现象点明，因而在当今社会迅速成为世界潮流。
美国人的“通缉本·拉登”T恤衫一问世，阿富汗塔利班毫不示弱，也马上推出印有“基地”组织领导人头像的T恤衫，电视画面这一中间媒介促成了这场无声的语言交锋。暂且不说穿着这些T恤衫的人有多张狂，光是T恤衫内容的独特与大胆就足以吸引摄像机的镜头，它们分文不花就把信息传达给了电视机前的亿万观众。
新时代的先驱
上世纪60年代，民权运动和越南战争使美国梦开始破灭。美国全国有色人种协进会上街游行的时候，成员们挥舞着美国国旗，身穿印有该组织名称缩写的T恤衫，以弘扬他们维护非裔美国人这一少数族群的公民权利的宗旨。
曾经风靡一时的“犹他大学体育系财产”或“哈佛”等字样的高等院校T恤衫已经不再是时尚的标志，商家也无法再从中赢利。支持改革事业的新左派学生更偏向于象征中立的素色T恤，因此学生非暴力统一行动委员会的成员就身穿T恤衫加牛仔裤，以示与受剥削的工人阶级团结在一起。上世纪60年代的另一件大事——越南战争——使在民权运动中已经凸现的观点分歧变得更为显著。有人打出了爱国口号“无论其对错，祖国就是祖国”，和平主义学生反戈一击，喊出“要做爱，不要战争”，这成为整整一代人的心声。
在这股自由主义浪潮的推动下，妇女很快开始发出自己的声音。女权运动以后，其他的妇女运动也接踵而来，要为“另一半的人类”争取平等的权利。随着众多女性经济上日渐独立，她们要求在自由性爱的大环境下享受自主的生活。妇女为婚姻以及意外怀孕所束缚的日子已经一去不返了——第二种束缚的解除，很大程度上是归功于避孕药的问世。T恤与牛仔裤的搭配成为新出现的中性现象穿着的象征，女权运动的示威口号一个比一个睿智、大胆与激动人心。
纽约的世贸中心在9·11袭击中轰然坍塌，四天后，唐人街的小商贩们的货摊上就推出了5美元一件的T恤衫，上面印着或鼓吹复仇的“罪恶终将受到惩罚”或铭记事件的“毋忘世贸中心”字样。
作为一个完全因全球化而出现的产品，T恤衫既有光彩的一面，也有灰暗的一面。值得留意的是，在中国，T恤衫的原始成本不超过20美分，仅为最终售价的0.5%，如果进口商在这些源自中国的产品上贴上“美国制造”的标签，那么零售价将更高。然而，反对全球化的活跃人士正是利用这种全球性的工具，表达了他们的不满。2001年在热那亚的反对八国集团的集会中，五万名示威游行者中的许多人都身着T恤，上面写着“你们八国，我们6亿人”，以及“世界不是一件商品”。