Just before winter break, my group and I Skyped with Suzanne Rae Pelaez, a Brooklyn based clothing designer. Suzanne Rae Pelaez designs feminist clothing called ‘Suzanne Rae’ and tries to incorporate feminism into her line as much as possible. Pelaez graduated from Parsons The New School for Design and also holds an economics degree from Bryn Mawr College. The goal of our interview was to gain knowledge on feminism, mostly on slut shaming and how it related to violence against women.

We learned that the Suzanne Rae line is inspired my art and tries to make the wearer feel comfortable in the clothes. Most of the clothes are made of performance fabrics to make the wearer feel as comfortable as possible. Pelaez also works hard to inspire and educate the wearer of her line. She wants her line to be an eye-opener to the world of feminism for her wearer. Pelaez and the Suzanne Rae line also work with feminist non-profits such as Girls Inc., homeless shelters and One Girl at a Time. Pelaez works with these organizations to help less fortunate girls, create opportunities and donate.

In an address to slut shaming, Pelaez said she thought it was a “disgusting excuse to pre-judge a woman.” To further her point, she brought up the “she asked for it because her skirt was short/ her top was low cut/ her dress was tight/ etcetera” excuse. It is incorrect to assume that a woman wants to have sex because of what she is wearing. “It’s important to dress for yourself,” said Pelaez. “If you love your legs, wear a short skirt, wear short shorts. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about it. Only you can make yourself upset.”

To close, our group (and Suzanne) would like to remind everyone that no woman (or man) is responsible for their abuse the attacker or abuser is the one to blame. Unfortunately, parts of our society don’t realize that a victim of abuse, whether it’s domestic or sexual or familial, is not responsible for their abuse. My group and I gained a great amount insight from Suzanne Rae Pelaez.