Fashion Industry Induces Prophylactic Shock for HIV/AIDS Awareness

The fashion industry is an easy and expanse target to have a pop at. When the
idea to make clothing from condoms took off, albeit to invaluably raise
HIV/AIDS awareness, wasn't it just setting itself up for more grief? I mean,
what happened to an emblazoned plain white T?  Do we really need to see
rubber wedding gowns, evening dresses, hats, bikinis and lollipops to maybe
even distract us from the real issue that motivated the move in the first
place? OK, a T full of condoms would avoid any trips to the chemist for a
while, if they were good to use of course. Does
their effectiveness and reliability get compromised in the garment making
process?

Now then, I fully appreciate the importance of statistics/facts/figures but
PANDEMIC surely hints at the sheer scale of the HIV/AIDS situation and the
number of blameless, untaught people who unwittingly generate it. Chances are
that if it doesn't affect you or your family directly, it'll affect someone
you/they at least know of, it's that bad folks. Despite my apprehension toward
the close association that's forming between fashion, cheap giggles and
diseases of PANDEMIC proportions, if just 1 starry eyed adolescent discovers
awareness and enlightenment well, then I guess it can't be too much of a bad
thing now, can it?

 

 

 

Anyhow, aside from the method, it's the message that's important and so I'll
try to refrain from what could be construed as inappropriate jibes at the
fashion industry this time. Although there are still a few things I'd like to
know about the clothing range:

1) Are the condoms usable and/or recyclable and if so, should they be at
all?  (New outperform used surely)

2) Are the condoms hazardous around naked flames?  (I've personally always
tried to avoid flames when wearing mine)

3) Can they still be used to seal your pets canned food once opened? (Tired of
losing those lid-seal things?)

4) Which flavours suit which seasons best and is it Okay to mix them? (As always,
it's a matter of taste)

5) Does dry-cleaning remove those awful spermicidal odours? (Now what am I talking
about?)

 

(Images
are of outfits made of condoms during a fashion show at the 4th China
Reproductive Health New Technologies & Products Expo in Beijing. The show
was held at the Fourth China Reproductive Health New Technologies and Products
Expo and organized by China’s largest condom manufacturer, Guilin Latex
Factory, to promote the use of condoms in the fight against HIV/AIDS.)

 

 

Find
out more about HIV/AIDS and how to spread awareness at www.aids.org

 

 

Also
check out Designers Against AIDS www.designersagainstaids.com
and the new Fashion Against AIDS range that will be launching in H&M stores
this February.

 

 

 

 

 

By
Ant Standring

 

Antantacid@aol.com