On Nov. 10, the Spring Hill College Alliance Club hosted its second annual fashion show to promote the beauty of all humans. The fashion show was held in Byrne Memorial Hall from 7 to 10 p.m.
The SHC Alliance Club was started in 2011, and the purpose of the club is, as written, “to provide a safe place for students regardless of sexual-orientation, sex, gender identity, race, religion or creed, as well as to provide understanding, education, awareness, safety and acceptance for all members of the LGBT+ community.”
The first year of the fashion show was last year, and around 50 people were in attendance. This year, the turnout doubled to over 100 students. The models were made up of a diverse group of Spring Hill students, who attended a casting call in order to be selected. After the auditions, the models had weekly practices to work on their walks, confidence and to put their outfits together. All models had total creative control over what they wanted to wear to express themselves.
To expand on that, president Austin Thompson has been trying to open up the club even further to other minority groups that feel they do not have a voice on campus. “The campus is a predominantly straight, white, traditional religion (like catholic, baptist, etc.), and so a lot of people who do not fit that mold sometimes feel excluded or that they don’t have a voice on campus. I, as president of Alliance, want to do my part in changing that. So, through our club, we wish to provide a more active, fun place and platform for those minorities,” Thompson stated.
Through the fashion show, Alliance Club gets people involved with the club and allows for the club to put on entertainment for the campus. The show typically consists of minority models who Thompson feels are not always represented on campus by other clubs or Greek life. In addition, the club addresses serious social issues, such as as harmful stereotypes, depression recovery, and hope to create an open dialogue about these topics through their events.
“The fashion show unites people,” Thompson stated. “For those that put it together, we grow together in community as we have practices, rehearsals and meetings about the event. We grow stronger together and our friendships become set in stone. For those that watch the show on the day of, they are able to see this success in the form of entertainment and, hopefully, they are touched by something that they see.”