It’s a nice and bright summer morning and you decide to wear something nice to work. You opt on wearing a white shirt with crisp black trousers to look sharp after a holiday. But wait! You realize that you can’t wear white after Labor Day and all your efforts go in vain!
But why can’t you wear white after Labor Day?
There are plenty of theories out there on the web stating that why can’t you wear white after Labor Day and indulge you in a bit of brainwashing, thereby making you blind followers of such rules and regulations.
However, we are here to debunk all the myths and provide you with the ‘real’ reason behind you not donning any shade of white after Labor Day. Let’s dive deep to know more!
Why Can’t you Wear White After Labor Day?
As promised to you earlier, we are here to reveal the real reason behind you not wearing the shades of blanco after your Labor Day holiday. This is because it is simply considered unpopular as per the American traditions and rules. In fact, most Americans generally avoid wearing whites post Memorial Day and stack them away for a long time.
However, there is another reason behind this tradition and that is classism. As per American history, wearing white was considered a symbol of status and luxury. It was an attempt to sift the old money elitists from the new money group and preventing ‘outsiders’ from breaking this rule.
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History Behind Why Can’t you Wear White After Labor Day?
Let’s go back in time to know more about the beginning of the tradition. In the 1800s and 1900s, wearing white or any similar shade marked the fact that you belong to the elite as white-coloured clothing was hardly produced back then.
Most of the middle and lower class population of the USA either wore black or any other colour to differentiate themselves from the higher status people. This was done by the ladies who belonged to the elite community to create their own fashion rules as they ruled with an iron fist after the Civil War.
The elite women decided to differentiate themselves from the rest of the population and hence chose white as the medium of differentiation. If you were to pick any photograph from the 1900s, you would notice that most Americans who could afford a luxurious vacation wore whites on their holidays while the rest would wear ordinary shades.
To add to that, Labor Day was declared as a national holiday in 1884. The trend had been so powerful since then that it is simply imperative to find any American wearing any other colour except white after the holiday.
A rather absurd history behind why can’t you wear white after Labor Day!
What Happens if You Wear White on Labor Day?
If I would have answered this question in the 1920s or 30s, you would have faced wide-scale ostracization from the society for not following this tradition. This was probably due to the lack of awareness and the inability to rebel against the elite.
Fast forward to 2021 and we are in a much more advanced and informed society where news and information spreads like wildfire on the Internet. People have become more critical of rules and rituals and are hell bent on making society more progressive than regressive in nature.
So, just relax and rest assured that you won’t be going to prison for wearing white on September 7. However, some outdated folks may come and provide you with a hundred reasons on why can’t you wear white after Labor Day?
Critical Reception
While most of the population adhered to this tradition, there were several rebels among the sheep who decided to break away from this tradition and find out the reason behind following such an obsolete and outdated tradition.
According to Judith Martin, a world-renowned etiquette authority, this tradition was nothing but a means to further fuel the fire of class-distinction and differentiation among the people. She said that people didn’t have to follow such nonsensical rules that would promote hatred and violence between themselves.
She further mentioned how people were ready to defy the rules and do away with this tradition a long-time ago. But such was the influence of the rich that going against them would be as good as committing suicide and hence, they decided to suppress their voice for their own well-being.
Do People Still Follow this Tradition?
Fortunately, things do get better with time and people have decided to do away with this tradition since the advent of the 21st century. Various fashion magazines such as Vogue and Chanel advise their readers to not follow this tradition anymore as it made no sense to keep such a bizarre tradition alive.
Various celebrities and eminent personalities have also gone on record and spoken against keeping this traditions. Some of them include Kim Kardashian and Michelle Obama who appeared in whites for various functions after the Labor Day.
If you’re still thinking about the many reasons why can’t you wear white after Labor Day, look at these above-mentioned celebrities and get inspired on wearing the whites after a Labor Day vacation.
Wearing white after Labor Day seems to be a thing of the past now. With gradual evolution in the mindsets of people and the availability of social media, they have begun to question everything that they see and hear around them.
This tradition is slowly seeing a decline in followers and with people adopting a progressive mindset, it will be fair to say that instead of questioning why can’t you wear white after Labor Day, there will come a time when it may have completely died and people may flock the streets of New York City in all-whites after Labor Day.
Now that you know the history behind this tradition, will you still find excuses on why can’t you wear white after Labor Day or will you move ahead with the world and try something different?
The choice is yours!
