poverty porn?

"Someone from an underprivileged background wearing Burberry gets called a chav, mocked for being nouveau riche and upwardly appropriating a culture out of their financial league, but a wealthy student wearing a tracksuit and cap is ironic"

It is a fact I'm well aware of, that I've had a very privelleged upbringing, Although my dad's side of the family comes from a working class background, both of my parents now have professional jobs and my mum's side of the family have always been more than comfortable. Living in some of the more expensive uni halls, it is right to assume a lot of my peers are also increidbly lucky finance wise; and yet,when looking at some of the outfits around, one would be forgiven for thinking differently. Whether it be the tracksuit bottoms tucked into socks, through to the adoption of slang by North Londoners, the fetishisation of working class culture is there for all to see. I have friends from detached houses in Surrey that act as though theyre from the depths of Houndslow. I guess im somewhat guilty of it myself, I own a lot of vintage sports wear off depop, but I wonder just what it is that makes people so insecure about their privelledge.

I guess the adoption of such outfits reveals a deep-rooted insecurity. University has always been described as a time for reinventing yourself, or even finally being able to discover your own identity. For those who have been surrounded by a network of wealth growing up, it is an opportunity to mask this privilege. Entering an environment where you are a stranger, it is almost a form of romanticised escapism. Beaten up Kappa track jackets, vintage quarter zip fleeces and cuffed tracksuit pants tucked into nike 97's seem almost a uniform. I now own all black airforce one's, which in the past my mum dubbed ' chavvy school shoes', but theyre are now all the rage on nights out. I suppose this counter signalling is a statement of difference to other students which sets them apart from their peers, a rejection of the negative connotations of being wealthy.

It is a statement of absolute superiority, crafted on no foundation of reality other than having the position in society to be able to make such a visual and public statement in the first place. It is saying, ‘I can be whoever I want to be’ – in some circumstances an admirable claim, but not if it is centred upon a sense of inherent privilege at the expense of those struggling in society. This is not to say, i dont think, that people do this deliberately. But it is a real problem when looking into the deep rooted impact this has on the idea of class and privelledge and perhaps an issue that should be raised, and something people should consider more when making choices.