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Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan came on short notice. The House Speaker’s plane landed at the Taipei Songshan Airport on a Tuesday night, free of bustling crowds in the morning and the usual hustle of people in the island nation. However, Pelosi’s entrance into the country was important to the country.
Among the crowd of monotonous suits is the pink jumpsuit that Pelosi wore when she walked along the airport in front of the luminaries from Taiwan as well as the media. While Pelosi’s trip has been seen from a highly political vantage point, her outfit symbolizes more than what her agenda was when she went to Taiwan.
As reported, Pelosi made her declaration, saying that the United States will stand with Taiwan in its journey to economic prosperity and opening up to the global market. But more than that is the political communication that is donned by her pink outfit.
Pelosi made no change to her attire in between her flight. In fact, the House Speaker wore the same outfit when she went to Malaysia before Taiwan. With her suit are the usual heels and pearls that are common among US politicians. Pelosi could have changed her wardrobe while she was in transit to Taiwan, but she didn’t. This only means that Pelosi intended to wear the pink-clad outfit to communicate something.
The suit meant confidence, it was powerful, but it did not incite any threats. Instead, it seemed that wearing pink in front of the Taiwanese officials meant is a gesture of friendship, not a protest against China, which has since accused the speaker of maliciously visiting to aggravate the pressure between the countries.
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Pelosi mirroring another great politician
With her choice of clothing, many people have come to wonder if she wanted to mirror a woman who was an icon for many Americans: Hillary Clinton.
Clinton wore a pink outfit in 1995 during the Fourth World Conference on Women by the United Nations, which was held in Beijing. ‘Women’s rights are human rights’ was the statement made by the then-first lady that has been cemented into the fabric of many societies across the globe.
Clinton then called on nations, including China, for their threats to women and indicated that the cycle of violence and prejudice should stop. This form of dissent against China is somewhat similar to what Pelosi did when she angered China after her Taiwan trip.
China censored the speech made by Clinton. However, here comes Pelosi donning the same pink outfit as if to remind China of women capable of standing against a superpower.
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It’s pink for Pelosi
There have been many occasions when the US senior official was seen wearing pink clothing. For instance, she wore a pink suit in an interview on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” she also wore pink pumps for a photo op with the House Committee Chairs and sported a Fuschia dress during the 166th swearing-in of Congress. On her Twitter account, Pelosi can also be seen with a pink blazer.
Like many women in politics, Pelosi rarely answers questions related to her fashion choice. However, we can be sure that the House Speaker places high regard on what the power of clothing projects to the public, including the choice of color.
Whenever Pelosi wears pink, it clearly exudes feminine power. This spirit is also exhibited by a number of women in the political landscape like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who applies her red lipstick as her “war paint,” and Vice President Kamala Harris’ all-white suit for her acceptance as the first female Vice President of the country.
The choice of wardrobe colors means a lot to the public eye and even to politicians, which may be why Tsai Chi-chang, the deputy speaker of the Taiwan legislature, sported a pink tie when he met with Pelosi the morning after her arrival.
Clothes have symbolism, and her message was delivered effectively when Pelosi chose a color that symbolizes feminine power.
Source: CNN
