More than 400 years ago, 102 men, women and children crowded into a cramped wooden boat in order to set sail across the Atlantic to an unknown shore on the other side of the world. They had been on the ship for over a month and half even before leaving port and would spend another two months navigating the cold, roiling Atlantic. It was, by all accounts, a miserable experience. Many of us living through COVID-19 may empathize.
Admittedly, it may seem unusual to conjure the story of the Mayflower when considering the global pandemic and its effects on immigration and the fashion industry, particularly as it relates to digital technology. But the more I think about it, the more apt the analogy becomes, especially as social distancing begins to feel increasingly like we’re all bobbing on the waves, patiently making our way to an unknown shore. Those early settlers endured seemingly impossible odds and overcame hardships that took the lives of many of their number. But they survived, using perseverance and ingenuity to make a life on a rocky shore. That spirit remains today.
As an immigration attorney, I am constantly reminded of the challenges that my clients have overcome to make their way to the United States. Some have fled war, famine and strife for the promise of a better life that lies just beyond our golden gates. Other new arrivals, burning with passion and an unstoppable desire to contribute, add extraordinary abilities that fuel America’s incredible engines of innovation. Are they any different than our forebears who, in looking for new opportunities, built industries that changed the world? Are they any different from us now, as we look anxiously towards the horizon in an attempt to navigate towards an uncertain future? We are, in a very real sense, “all in the same boat.”
As we stare into the jaws of the COVID-19 crisis, it’s only natural to have concern about the future. Will we recover? When? And what will the recovery look like? There is no doubt that the economy will struggle during the pandemic, and the fashion industry has already felt the effects of the virus.
If history can teach us anything, it is this: we will recover. It’s impossible to know how long it will take, but we have definite advantages in 2020 that were not available in earlier pandemics. Technology is going to be a key element to recovery, not just in developing palliative therapies or vaccines for the health sector but in specific industries, like fashion.
As many readers of the Fashion Mannuscript are undoubtedly aware, advances in digital design, large scale autonomous manufacturing and the ability to communicate in real time with designers, suppliers and buyers from around the world has been nothing short of revolutionary. In the last 10 years, we have seen advances that have sped up production, increased efficiency and cut costs. While many of us are less than thrilled to be working from home, there has never been a time when it has been easier to communicate. This is not to say that conference rooms should be replaced by kitchen tables; it is only to remark that the sophistication of technology will allow us to move forward, even as we explore uncharted waters.
Of course, there is no substitute for reality. Color, texture, the interplay of light and shadow on a silhouette; there are some things that cannot be truly appreciated in two dimensions — or within the confines of a closed country. I have written dozens of articles on the importance of immigration to the economy. Following recent restrictive proclamations intended to bolster the economic prospects of the American worker and protect the health of citizens, the future of immigration into America is more fraught than it has ever been before. What is even more troubling is that while these restrictions seem to be geared towards halting the damage caused by COVID-19, they are clearly being implemented for short-term political gain. These policies are as destructive as they are myopic, and they threaten to cripple the country’s ability to fully engage in recovery.
To put it simply, we will need talent from around the world to ensure that we can not only restart the economy of the U.S. but rebuild our reputation as a global leader and the home to innovation and prosperity. Immigrants have stood shoulder to shoulder with native citizens during this crisis. They work in our hospitals, our factories, our grocery stores and our boardrooms. They are sewing masks in their shops and volunteering to help their neighbors. With their help, we not only have access to the global marketplace of ideas but also help demonstrate that America is home to best and brightest in the world. We cannot afford to tell tomorrow’s Diane von Furstenbergs, Oscar de la Rentas or Elon Musks to go somewhere else. We continually need to attract the best to remain the best!
When the Mayflower reached the New World in 1620, no one knew what to expect. The journey had been hard and the road ahead long. But those early immigrants prevailed, and soon, successive waves of newcomers joined them. Each generation faced new challenges, but they also added to the resolve and ingenuity that defines our national identity. While the early promise of the country has temporarily been tested by a virus and political forces that have led some to question our commitment to the principles of our founding, we will — as we always have — come together to navigate tumultuous times. The fashion industry may look very different in a year from now than it did just months ago, but I am confident that it will thrive and be the exemplar of grace, sophistication and poise that will show the world that America is once again the hoped-for home for so many.
Michael Wildes is the Mayor of Englewood, New Jersey and the author of “Safe Haven in America: Battles to Open the Golden Door.” He is a former federal prosecutor and an adjunct professor of immigration law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.
