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It was 2016 when Public School ditched the traditional fashion system and sent out models wearing clothing that read “We Need Leaders.” Have the leaders materialized in fashion? “For me, the leaders are not coming from a single source or person. Times have changed and the leaders are all of us—especially the youth!” says cofounder Maxwell Osborne. “Aurora James from Brother Vellies has also been a standout with her 15 Percent Pledge, demanding for proper representation across retail channels.” Osborne’s cofounder Dao-Yi Chow cites Pyer Moss’s Kerby Jean-Raymond, Prabal Gurung, and Phillip Lim as leaders as well, adding, “It’s amazing to see designers completely get behind the social-justice movement in big and small ways. It’s like people have really found their voice through activism, and in some cases, completely altered their business model for the cause.”
It’s safe to say that Osborne and Chow have become leaders in their own right too, rethinking their business to more sustainable ends. They are also continuing to incorporate social justice into their work with a new collaboration with the Gordon Parks Foundation under their We Need Leaders banner. Available today and tomorrow on Public School’s e-commerce site are a selection of tees featuring Parks’s images: a self-portrait, a rarely seen photograph of Malcolm X, and a photograph of a group of Black Panthers. Priced at $75 each, the tees are made with V-To—PSNY’s sustainable arm—and are 60% recycled and 40% organic cotton. Net proceeds will be donated to the the Gordon Parks Arts & Social Justice Fund, which supports student artists.
Parks’s body of work spanned decades and mediums, with his photography bridging documentary, fashion, and art as it appeared in Life and Vogue as well as in galleries. He also pursued painting, music, and writing up until his death at 93 in 2006, making him one of the 20th century’s most prolific and influential artists. “We couldn’t be more excited to partner with a foundation representing one of the most important photographers and humanitarians of our lifetime,” says Chow. “The fact that his documentation of Black life, the racial divide, poverty, and social inequality in the U.S. is as relevant today as it was 60 years ago is a sad one, and it shouldn’t be lost on anyone that the struggle continues to haunt the legacy of this country.”
The three images Osborne and Chow chose to highlight in their collaboration contribute to conversations around the current global Black Lives Matter movement. “We selected Parks’s photographs of Malcolm X and the Black Panthers specifically because this history mirrors our current situation where leadership in the Black community understands that you have to fight for any and all justice, and without justice there can be no peace,” Chow continues.
Suffice to say that in fashion, a new leadership is rising. Public School is contributing—and setting its sights beyond the industry. “2020 obviously has huge implications,” says Chow when asked what he’s looking for in the leaders of the future. “Hopefully [Joe] Biden will make a progressive pick for his VP. I would love to see Stacey Abrams in the White House. Hopefully Killer Mike can finally come out of the closet and officially start his political career—but it isn’t just 2020 that we can be focused on. It has to continue to be about the local and state races that cycle all year round.”