Today, hoop earrings are a staple piece of women’s jewelry that is part of society regardless of ethnicity, class, or race. It is one of the oldest accessories, originating around 2500 B.C.E in Nubia, and spreading to the ancient Greek, Roman, Asian, and Egyptian empires (Chatterton, 2020). Hoops were worn primarily by royals to symbolize power, wealth and longevity (Davis, n.d.). Fast forward to the 20th century when western cultures started to protest ear-piercing because they saw it as a “barbaric act” associated with “Native American and Latin cultures… creat[ing] a stigma” (Circling Through Time, 2020). Around this time, American’s also did not want to be associated with Black communities or Latin immigrants (Davis, n.d.). Despite Western views, hoops remained important for Black and Latin communities, as they were worn as a sign of their “strength, identity, and resistance to discrimination” (Davis, n.d.). Today, hoop earrings are everywhere and on everyone; they have been co-opted into the mainstream.
Hoop earrings have been an integral part of Black and Latin culture, worn as a sign of bravery, strength, and identity in the face of the challenges that come with living in the US as a marginalized group (Vines, n.d.). Consequently, there are critics who see hoop earrings as looking “unprofessional, ghetto, and distracting” and they are not afraid to showcase their perceptions on media platforms (Candelario, 2021). Television programs showcasing loud, poorly mannered, ‘ghetto’ Black women wearing large hoop earrings play a large role in the stereotypes formed around Black women wearing hoops. So, instead of non-black people seeing hoops on Black women as part of their culture, their heritage, their grit, it is viewed as low class and trashy (Candelario, 2021).
The way in which hoop-wearing, Black women are shown in popular media plays right into the concept of misogynoir. In Misogynoir transformed by Moya Bailey, she coins the term ‘misogynoir’ to describe “the anti-black racist misogyny that Black women experience, uniquely co-constitutive racialized and sexist violence that befalls Black women as a result of oppression” and how it is “perpetuated through popular media” such as television shows (p. 1). For example, in Sex and the City, Carrie Bradshaw states “Yeah, like ghetto gold for fun,” in response to Miranda saying, “But you wear gold jewelry” (Garcia, 2022). Further proving Bailey’s point that “negative images and narratives do more than affect self-esteem… Misogynoiristic caricatures materially impact the lives of Black women by justifying poor treatment” (p. 2).
Similarly, hoop earrings are an integral part in Latina women’s lives. In a New York Times article, Sandra Garcia states hoop earrings are “an extension of our sass, our style and us” (Ocampo, n.d). Like Black women, Latinas are a deeply marginalized group in the US who experience unfair portrayals on television. Take Gloria Pritchett from the show Modern Family as an example. Gloria is a Latina character that is loud, exotic, outgoing, and rarely (if ever) seen without her large hoop earrings. Bailey speaks on Black feminist theory - “articulat[ing] the power of the image to serve the hegemony of ‘white supremacist capitalist patriarchy’ by controlling the way society views marginalized groups” (p. 1) - it equally applies to Latina women. Their portrayals in the media crafted by white men in power are controlling the way society as a whole views these marginalized groups.
Although the media continued its misogyny of Black and Latin women, “Hoop earrings became a symbol of female power during the feminist movement… and were the accessory of choice to make a statement” in the 1960s (Circling Through Time, 2020). In the 70s, the urban night-life scene enhanced the appeal of large hoop earrings to partygoers, regardless of ethnicity. In the dance pop era of the 80s and 90s, large hoops held steady to their popularity while also further expanding into the rap and R&B scene. It is important to note that the dance pop, rap, and R&B genres came from Black and Latin communities - subcultures in the US (Chatterton, 2020).
According to Devon Powers book, On trend: The business of forecasting the future, Cool Hunting (Chapter 3), “subcultures were the new tastemakers” (p. 59). Powers discusses a “breed of market researchers for youths” called “Cool hunters” (p. 58). Their job was to figure out what’s ‘cool’ with teenagers and young adults so large corporations could market and capitalize off it.
The Givenchy 2015 spring collection showcased mainly white models with hoops of all sizes; Vogue magazine reviewed this show and referred to it as a “Chola Victorian inspiration”. This “chola” subculture that Vogue magazine refers to was “born from the [Latin] working-class… [who] incorporated hoops as an identity” (Ocampo, n.d). Another example of cool hunting was in 2016 when hoops went on sale at Urban Outfitters for $16, and later for $45 at Marc Jacobs. In Black communities, “these staples often sold for less than $5… for some, it’s high-fashion. But for us, it’s a reminder that something is more valuable when it comes from white culture than when it comes from our own communities” (Candelario, 2021).
Hoop earrings were seen as ghetto and trashy representations of marginalized groups in the US, and to an extent, still are. However, today we see celebrities like Taylor Swift, Hailey Beiber, and Gigi Hadid wearing hoops ranging in size on a daily basis. In a twitter statement by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez “next time you tell Bronx girls to take off their hoop earrings, they can just say they are dressing like congresswomen” (Candelario, 2021). As AOC was sworn into congress, she wore a white pantsuit, bright red lipstick, and her hoops; reclaiming hoops as a cultural identity.
Works Cited
Candelario, C. (2021, October 14). Black and Latinx Women Don’t Care if You Wear Hoop
Earrings. But We Do Want You to Stop Calling Them Trendy. PureWow. Retrieved October 16, 2022, from https://www.purewow.com/fashion/hoop-earrings-black-and-latinx-communities
Chatterton, M. (2020, May 9). From Elegant Ancient Accessory to Symbol of Black and Latina Culture, The History of Gold Hoop Earrings. Lillicoco. Retrieved October 12, 2022, from https://www.lillicoco.com/blogs/love-lillicoco-blog/from-elegant-ancient-accessory-to-symbol-of-black-and-latina-culture-the-history-of-gold-hoop-earrings
Circling Through Time: The History Of Hoop Earrings. (2020, June 1). Jewelry Auctioned. Retrieved October 14, 2022, from https://www.jewelry-auctioned.com/learn/buying-jewelry/history-of-hoop-earrings
Davis, D. (n.d.). A Brief History of Hoop Earrings. Roma Designer Jewelry. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://www.romadesignerjewelry.com/blogs/education/a-brief-history-of-hoop-earrings
Garcia, G. (2022, February 13). The Unrelenting Power of Hoop Earrings In Black and Latinx Communities. Editorialist. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://editorialist.com/fashion/hoop-earrings-history/
Ocampo, S. (n.d.). Caught in a Loop: An Appropriation of Hoops. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://lagente.org/caught-in-a-loop-an-appropriation-of-hoops/
Vines, E. (n.d.). History Of Hoop Earrings: When Did It Come Into Fashion. Vines of the Yarra Valley. Retrieved October 13, 2022, from https://vinesoftheyarravalley.com.au/history-of-hoop-earrings-when-did-it-come-into-fashion/
Thea Kerekes,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your piece regarding the commercialization of hoop earrings and how they have essentially been “co-opted into the mainstream.” I thought that the way you provided readers with a timeline of their history, showing how, dating all the way back to 2500 B.C.E, they were once an accessory of luxury worn by royals; however, overtime they became a westernized product whose authenticity was appropriated and gobbled up by the culture industry. I also loved the articles you used to further support your analysis on their appropriation overtime. Moreover, I think that providing analysis on this article by connecting it to the article about Coolhunting was extremely intelligent, because it places more emphasis on your overall point that wearing hoop earrings has become viewed as “trendy” despite its start as a marginalized, highly-valued product worn by Royals.
One article that I think would have further benefited the analysis of the appropriation of hoop earrings would be Adorno and Horkeimer’s essay: Dialectic of Enlightenment. Adorno and Horkeimer theorize that every product becomes appropriated and loses its authenticity due to their commercialization through the mainstream. Adorno and Horkeimer would essentially offer a neomarxist critique of pseudo individuality: the idea that elusiveness of coolhunting comes partly from capitalism's necessity of oversaturating the market with products to further drive and maintain economic gain. This article would perfectly align with the ideas presented in your piece not only because of its close-knit tie to Cool-hunting, but also because the Frankfurt school is also the critique of laid capitalism under which mass commodities rely for their value on the fetish aspect rather than the use aspect: showing that the product is a false need.
-Blake Massoni