Talk of bellbottom jeans, button-down shirts, cologne, and sunglasses - the products behind the Tommy Hilfiger empire - was generally well received among the Tufts community when the famed CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Inc. spoke at the Entrepreneurial Leadership program's inaugural lecture event last week. But, the businessman's marketing of expensive products in poor urban communities has sparked opposition among members of the Pan-African Alliance (PAA).
At a forum organized by the PAA, group members and a handful of Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate representatives accused the designer of disproportionately selling his products to the black community and taking advantage of the black hip-hop artist image to advertise for his company.
Some members of the PAA tried to organize a protest against Hilfiger on the day of his speech. But the plan was discarded when other group members voiced conflicting opinions. The PAA arranged the Monday night discussion as a group compromise.
Although the reasons why and the degree to which PAA members blame Tommy Hilfiger Inc. varied, those at the PAA board meeting agreed that the company bares some responsibility for negatively influencing the black community.
One arguments said that money from the black community - much of which comes from poor individuals who many say should have other budgetary priorities - adds to Hilfiger's wealth while detracting from the improvement of the black community's social institutions. Dressing in Hilfiger apparel gives the impression of belonging to a higher class, PAA members said, and so many black Americans are tempted to buy his products, though their funds would be better directed toward the benefit of the black community.
"A lot of it has to do with what's perceived as being rich," PAA member Andrea Marrow said. "If you have roaches at home but can still wear Tommy Hilfiger, then you have the status."
Carl Jackson, the political chair of the PAA, moderated the forum. He and Adam Carlis, a member of the Coalition for Social Justice and Nonviolence, were the two students most visibly antagonistic students towards Hilfiger.
"The entrepreneurship that Hilfiger promotes... is that the kind we want in our school?" Jackson asked. "Those are sinister attempts at marketing."
Child and prison labor, an issue that Hilfiger mentioned in his speech, was also discussed at the forum. While Hilfiger took responsibility for having employed inexpensive labor in foreign factories that worked under substandard conditions, he said that his company no longer contracts such workers, and has joined a consortium with other large clothing makers to collectively abolish the practice.
Not all students at the discussion were as passionate as Carlis and Jackson, and many spoke about the consumer responsibility in the misallocation of black community funds. Advertisements pays off for the company because teenagers, who are the main consumers of Tommy Hilfiger products, are easily swayed to buy clothes displayed on the windows in shopping malls, sophomore Jamila Moore said.
"We have to create a greater social awareness market," Moore said, responding to a question about the allocation of black community funds -which Jackson insisted were being incorrectly directed to benefit Hilfiger.
Moore also suggested that the black community channel the money spent on Hilfiger clothing to buy products from black entrepreneurs like Fubu.
PAA President Valerie Rock proposed further discussion about solutions for the problem faced by the black community. She, as well as others, suggested that a balance must be kept between the individual, the company, and society as a whole in terms of the responsibility for allocating funds within different communities.
"We need to correct people who perpetuate stereotypes," said sophomore Lou Esparza, a member of the Coalition for Social Justice and Nonviolence. "We need to spread consciousness."
At the Hilfiger speech, members of the African Student Organization (ASO) asked the CEO, who said he donates to several charitable causes including Multiple Sclerosis and AIDS, to donate money for AIDS victims in Africa. At his speech, Hilfiger agreed to collaborate with the ASO's efforts, and has since been in contact with members of the corporation.
A non-political organization, ASO members did not attend Monday's forum and have not expressed an official opinion regarding their cooperation with the Hilfiger cooperation.
"We haven't come to a decision," said Akua Apraku, ASO's public relations representative. "We haven't decided or discussed the issue, but we are aware of the issues PAA faces and we understand what they are speaking of."
