The African Workplace Attire: A Colonial Mentality
I met Amusa at a work event in the fall of 2021. He is of Nigerian and Beninese descent and had married a lovely African-American woman. We talked about various sociocultural issues in our societies, and we both settled on a particular topic that had us talking for hours. The topic centered around acceptable workplace attire within the African community, and how western attires are more preferred in these situations.
As Africans, it is common knowledge that we are products of colonialism and a shared history that binds us all together. And as with the many fallouts of colonialism, a major disadvantage is the complete erosion of our indigenous cultural values and traditional systems, one of which is our indigenous attires. It's laughable that our indigenous languages are even classified as vernacular.
In corporate businesses within Africa, it is considered unethical to wear native attires on a work week. Most organizations consider our indigenous attires as casual wear, and not fit for the business environment. Native wear has now been relegated to Fridays and weekends. I dare not say that this is the case with every country in Africa, however, it has now become a norm in major countries within this blessed continent. I find this trend disheartening because we try so hard to imbibe the lifestyle of a group of people who see no reason to change their way of life. Western attire, which consists of a button-down shirt, trousers, tie, and jacket for men, and similar staples for women has now become the permanent dress code in the corporate world.
Who’s to blame? Our founding fathers? The Government? The people? Everyone?
We are all partly responsible for our sad reality. Our incessant need to evolve and become like the rest of the world has caused us to wholesomely adopt and embody the culture of the colonizers in every fabric of our community, from our architecture to our weddings, to our attire, to our preferred language of communication, our food, etc. Our reasoning is being shaped every single day to align with the West. I fear for what the future holds for us if we continue on this trajectory.
Can we ever break free?
I believe this has to change. It's high time we begin to embrace our cultural heritage and set new trends to promote Africa to the world. Africa is blessed with so many resources, land, people, culture, etc, and it would be a sin to hide beneath the thresholds of our past. Africa, EMERGE! We must change and we can, but how?
Benjamin .N., a friend of mine believes that true change can be achieved by focusing on the future generation; the children. I couldn't agree more. We can start by transforming school uniforms into Ankara-inspired wear. School teachers will not be left out of this mix. Indigenous wear can be enforced in schools. Children can learn to love and appreciate African prints. Children can learn to see the value in upholding and promoting their culture and heritage. Amongst other things, children can learn their native language.
Our Children should grow to prefer Africa
I also believe corporates have a part to play in all of this. These institutions can enact policies that encourage wearing indigenous attires on a work week (Mondays to Fridays).
“African prints are too colorful and distracting,” says Ebele. Ebele is my dear friend but, she does not share my views on this matter. I agree with Ebele, but with every potential problem comes a long-lasting solution. I do not think it is rocket science to produce less colorful and vibrant prints that can be acceptable in a corporate environment. I do not think it is rocket science to select or design fashion styles that are less distracting and appropriate for corporate work.
There is a solution to every problem, and this is not even a problem!
