Our continued support for First Nations people and reconciliation

After campaigning for “Yes” the AFC respected the call from First Nations leaders for silence. Now, we wish to express our continuing support for First Nations people and reconciliation.

Our campaign work highlighted the many brands and businesses who were active in showing their support for Yes. More broadly, it has underlined the AFC’s ongoing commitment to being part of a society that recognises First Nations’ perspectives.

Diversity, inclusion, listening and moving forward together is not a box to tick. It is a way of being and working that makes our community richer and stronger.

We are so grateful for the guidance and leadership of our board member Yatu Widders Hunt who is a champion of First Nations fashion and a proud Dunghutti/Anaiwan woman.

We would also like to recognise Rachel Perkins, Elle Roseby and Laura Thompson, and thank them for participating in the AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament webinar. You inspired us with your courage and your motivating call to action:

Be Active, Bring Yourself to This, Be Brave.

Thank you also to Kin Fashion’s Peter Naughton for driving this project and Eloise Bishop for making it happen.

And to Claire Ainsworth from Groundswell Giving, Courtney Miller from Next Generation and Marie-Claude Mallat from MCMPR for your generosity in orchestrating the photo shoot and press rollout that received such great support from the teams at Vogue, InStyle, Russh, Harper’s Bazaar and Marie Claire.

We would like to acknowledge the industry leaders and brands who joined #FashionForYes: Country Road, Clothing the Gaps, Citizen Wolf, bassike, Alix Higgins, Spell, Ngali, Kloke, Bianca Spender, Genevieve Smart (Ginger & Smart), Anna Plunkett (Romance Was Born), Sarah Munro (Sarah & Sebastian), Emma Mullholland (Emma on Holiday), Mikey Nolan (Double Rainbouu), Jordan Askill, Hamish Tame (Le Specs), Akira Isogowa and industry figures including Glynis Traill-Nash, Kellie Hush, Paloma Garcia, Natalie Xenita, Jordan Turner, Bella Thomas and last but definitely not least, a special thanks to Clare Press for her relentless advocacy for this cause.

Indigenous Fashion Fund

Looking ahead, in 2024 we are focussed on maximising the opportunity we have through the activation of the AFC’s Indigenous Fashion Fund.

The fund will be used to undertake a listening exercise to better understand the key priorities for the First Nations fashion sector and to discuss how to establish governance structures that embed First Nations advice, engagement and advocacy through the AFC and broader industry. The model and approach will be developed in partnership with First Nations fashion peak bodies and leaders, with the first meeting to be held in the early part of 2024.

There is so much to do, but at the AFC, we remain determined and optimistic that together, we can ‘Be Active, Bring Ourselves to This, Be Brave’ and continue to support First Nations people on the journey towards reconciliation.

The AFC is proud to contribute 5% of membership fees to the Indigenous Fashion Fund, Join Us now.

AFC supports Yes with #FashionForYes

The Australian Fashion Council (AFC) proudly announces its unwavering support for the Voice to Parliament and launch of #FashionForYes, taking a decisive step towards fostering recognition for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

This campaign follows the ‘AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament’ event where AFC Director, Yatu Widders-Hunt hosted a panel of powerful Indigenous and industry voices: Rachel Perkins, filmmaker and Co-Chair of Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition, Laura Thompson Founder of Clothing the Gaps, and Elle Roseby Managing Director of Country Road.

The panel engaged in an open and courageous conversation on the meaning and purpose of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, as well as unpacking some of the noise behind the Voice and why fashion brands should find their voice in support of this historic moment.

PANEL'S CALL OUT TO INDUSTRY:

BE ACTIVE (Rachel) BRING YOURSELVES TO THIS (Laura) BE BRAVE (Elle)

OTHER KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE PANEL:

This is a once in a generation opportunity to unify our nation.
This issue is not about politics, it is about human rights and social justice.
In the same way that we actively supported the fight for marriage equality, it is time to recognise and enshrine our First Nations’ people in the Constitution.
If we don’t make this change now, we will look back at this moment and wonder whether we did all that we could have.
Organisations/brands that have a Reconciliation Action Plan and/or a Social Responsibility Statement, or have previously celebrated Naidoc Week, should ask themselves why they are not actively also supporting the Voice.
Saying that it’s too hard or it’s too political is a privilege that’s not afforded to First Nations’ people. We all need to act now!

JOIN #FashionForYes

The AFC proudly supports the Yes campaign and will share a #FashionForYes toolkit for brands or individuals to use across eDM & Socials.

DOWNLOAD THE #FASHIONFORYES TOOLKIT

If you are creating your own communications, we encourage you to include #FashionForYes in your creative and/or captions for us to share and amplify.

TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP MAKE HISTORY

This is our chance to ‘walk the talk’ and act on our industry’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

BE ACTIVE. BRING YOURSELF TO THIS. BE BRAVE.

#FashionForYes

AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament

On October 14, Australians will be asked to vote Yes or No on a proposed law to enshrine an Indigenous representative body in the Constitution.

The referendum on the #VoicetoParliament will provide a historic opportunity for Australians to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

The AFC invites our community to an open conversation to unravel the facts behind the noise.

Join us as Yatu Widders-Hunt, General Manager at Cox Inall Ridgeway and AFC Board Director, leads a panel discussion with distinguished guests:
- Rachel Perkins, Multi-award-winning filmmaker and Co-Chair of Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition
- Laura Thompson, Co-Founder - Clothing The Gaps
- Elle Roseby, Managing Director - Country Road Group

AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament
4pm AEST, Wednesday 6 September 2023