Why Hillary Clinton wore white at the Democratic convention

Hillary Clinton's choice of clothing color is said to be intended to send a message about feminism.

Hillary Clinton at the US Democratic Party convention on July 28. Photo: Reuters.

On July 28, when Hillary Clinton officially became the Democratic presidential candidate, all eyes were on her as she wore a white suit, contrasting completely with the blue background.

According to the Guardian, white is the official color of the women's movement, along with green, yellow and purple. In the 1900s, women demanding the right to vote in the US were encouraged to attend marches wearing white.

Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City, said Clinton's use of white to evoke the suffrage movement was significant.

"It's a way of using clothing to communicate a visual message. Not everyone knows that suffragettes in the past often wore white, but once they do, it reinforces the historical significance of Hillary potentially becoming the first female president of the United States," Steele said.

"In Western culture, white is associated with purity and virtue, representing good people," Steele said. "The suffragettes must have had that in mind. They wanted to show that they were good citizens, so why shouldn't they have the right to vote?"

Women demanding the right to vote in New York in 1912. Photo: AP.

In 1984, when Geraldine Ferraro accepted the nomination as the first female vice president at the Democratic convention in San Francisco, she also wore white.

Clinton's clothing choices are not just about symbolic messages. Hazel Clark, research chair at Parsons School of Design in New York, said Clinton has certain limitations when it comes to choosing clothes.

"She has her own style of dress, so she can't choose an outfit that's too different from her usual style," Clark said.

"What if she wore a long dress? Or a short dress? That would be considered not formal enough. She couldn't look too feminine that night. She had to appear strong, like a man, to some extent," Clark stressed.

Steele pointed out the appeal of Hillary Clinton's outfit. "Amidst the sea of ​​colorful balloons, she was the center of attention, a heroine. That was the message she was sending, visually, symbolically."

According to VNE