Immediately following the inauguration of 46th President Joe Biden, social media platforms and school hallways buzzed with comments not only about the monumental day, but what first met the eye: inaugural fashion. 

With an unusually empty Inauguration Day amidst immensely dark times, fashion served as a spark for uplifting and spirited conversations. From dramatic monochromatic looks to eye-catching symbolic colors, the new administration, their families and guests managed to capture it all with style and respect. The looks served to celebrate a more diverse and fresh group of designers to break free from traditional dominant brands and strip the industry back down to the value of the American Dream. 

Bold intentional monochromatic outfits seemed to be the trend of the events of Jan. 20. Dr. Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and former First Lady Michelle Obama quickly became a popular trio in their complementary jewel tones. Vibrant shades of purple and blue were on display from mask to toe. Biden’s grandchildren also jumped in on the trend with Naomi wearing all white, Natalie in lively pink and Finnegan in a stunning tan alongside their cousins who did the same. 

Particularly, watching the first female Vice President be sworn in wearing her captivating purple was a beautiful sight to see. The outfit went along perfectly with Biden’s message of unity that rang clear throughout the day. VP Harris wore a “knockout coat and dress by Christopher John Rogers. Both Jean-Raymond and Rogers run independent, Black-owned businesses. Given Harris’s diligent attention to her style choices, the designers she chose to spotlight were also no accident,” Vogue magazine said in an article regarding the styling. 

This purposeful choice by Harris did not go unrecognized by the Staples community. 

“I read that Kamala’s outfit was made by two Black fashion designers which is so amazing and fitting for everything going on right now,” Annagrace McManus ’21 said. “I love that she did that.” 

Additionally, the choice of color served its own purpose. The shades of violet Harris, Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton displayed signaled solidarity and held ties to the Women’s Suffrage Movement. Alongside Biden’s theme of unity, purple combines the red and blue that has severely divided the country these past few years. Wearing purple was likely a deliberate effort to evoke bipartisanship and solidarity. 

“Purple is the color of loyalty, and represents the royal blood that flows in the veins of every suffragette, the instinct of freedom and dignity,” the National Woman’s Party of the United States said in 1913.  Subtly but with bold meaning, Harris caught eyes and voiced support just through her silent fabrics. 

Likewise, President Biden made an effort to display Americanowned brands in his suit from Ralph Lauren, whose brand embodies tradition and the American Dream itself. 

Despite a quite different Inauguration during a challenging year with a new aspect of fashion, the mask, it seems as though politicians’ clothing can speak just as loud as words can.