This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Northwestern chapter.
Name: Sue Liu
Hometown: The Woodlands, Texas
Major: Psychology, BIP, IMC
Her Campus: What do you do as a member of UNITY?
Sue Liu: I’m one of the Co-Chairs of the Clothing Committee. Our specific role is to acquire, style and organize all of the clothes that go down the runway. We talk to a lot of Evanston and Chicago stores to convince them to let us borrow merchandise, which allows us to dress our 26 student models.
HC: Why is the fashion show important to you and the NU community?
SL: From an internal perspective, UNITY is an amazing way for students with a diverse set of talents and interests to support a good cause (our beneficiary, NoStigmas, is a non-profit that focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention). We have various committees – Clothing, Fundraising, Marketing, PR and Productions – to address the many considerations that go into planning such a large scale event, allowing members to develop their skills and passions in various ways.
For the greater Northwestern community, UNITY represents a way for anyone to explore and enjoy fashion. We place high value on diversity (I think that’s actually what our name refers to – unifying all people). We feature cultural clothing every year and even our models are all different shapes, sizes, colors and sexual orientations, which I think/hope is refreshing for our audience.
HC: What is your favorite way to express your own fashion?
SL: It really varies but my two favorite types of outfits are either all one color (a la groutfit) or involve mixing prints. I wear sneakers almost everyday because I like how they look and they’re comfortable AF.
HC: How do you think students can increase diversity and inclusion on campus?
SL: EMPATHIZE AND TRY TO LEARN FROM PEOPLE WHO COME FROM DIFFERENT PLACES THAN YOU. I think there’s a disconnect in the fundamental understanding of diversity/inclusion issues on campus, as evidenced by some of the commentary surrounding the recent ASG election. A lot of people get irritated and dismiss others who protest or even voice their opinions on social media, but it’s all out there for a reason. WHY are people mad? WHY do people feel excluded? So many people here are so privileged – myself included – but that doesn’t mean you need to hide your face from someone with a different background. You can either use your position to raise up the voices of others, or you can ignore those voices and perpetuate a system of their exploitation.
HC: If you had to wear one designer or brand for the rest of your life, who/what would it be and why?
SL: Opening Ceremony – cool combo of clean + modern + edgy + fun – but I can’t actually afford it. I would say Zara but I’m trying to cut down on my fast fashion consumption! It’s horrible for the environment and a lot of companies overlook unethical labor practices.
UNITY 2016: Renewal takes place this Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Hilton Orrington.