Fashion show honors Karen culture through clothing

For three months, ThuZar Htwe dedicated her time to organizing and planning her inaugural Karen fashion show to showcase Syracuse’s Karen community.

“Our clothing and the language we speak, those two things represent our culture the most,” Htwe said.

The idea came to Htwe, who is 24 and from Syracuse, after she attended several local events hosted by GOE Globel, a clothing and events company. Htwe connected with other models at the events.

Karen people come from Myanmar, formerly called Burma. They have faced religious and ethnic persecution by Myanmar’s military. Thousands of Karen people have fled Myanmar and settled in Syracuse. 

Htwe’s plans came to fruition Saturday. A mostly youthful crowd gathered at Thai Flavor Restaurant on Erie Boulevard East to celebrate Karen fashion, food and music. Htwe curated the fashion show, her first. She also believed it to be the first Karen fashion show in Syracuse.

Guests applauded with enthusiasm and pride, as they witnessed their culture represented in the restaurant adorned with Southeast Asian decorations and food.The culinary dishes served at the event included steamed and fried dumplings, spring rolls, papaya salad, pad thai and other variations of noodle dishes.

Throughout the fashion show, the moderators spoke to guests in English and Karen to cater to its multilingual audience.

The fashion show displayed traditional chay ka (clothing) and contemporary garments from local and cultural fashion brands, including I AM KNYAW, Jennifer Shwe Clothing and GOE Globel, a Syracuse-based brand. The evening also included musical performances from popular Asian music artists: ChinaTown Runner, and Star2, and local singer Eh Tha Yu John.

I AM KNYAW is co-directed by Shakerpaw Wah and Honey Moon. The brand uses clothing as a way to raise social awareness, and its goal is to encourage Karen people to remain connected to their heritage. 

Jennifer Shwe’s designs represented the standard cultural garments with intricate designs, weaved patterns, v-neck cuts, dyed prints, and wooden pearls. Shwe’s collection detailed the contrast between traditional clothing worn by men, women and children. The women modeled longer dresses covering their legs and men wore variations of shorts or pants with matching tops and headbands. 

Htwe, who also modeled in the fashion show, wore a traditional dress designed by Jennifer Shwe called Mu Yeh Pai Chay Ka. The lightweight dress was designed with wood pearls and is meant to be worn for special occasions.

The dress was meant to honor Karen culture and symbolizes the region where Htwe was raised, which is traditionally worn by people residing in the rainforests in Kayin, a state in Myanmar, Htwe said.

Over a dozen models walked along the red and gold pathway, wearing traditional Karen clothing, statement pieces with advocacy messages, and streetwear featuring collaborative designers. 

I AM KNYAW and GOE Globel presented hoodies, jackets, crewnecks and t-shirts. Some of the clothes had Karen symbols embroidered on the back. Select items were available for guests to purchase. 

I AM KNYAW fashion pieces displayed advocacy messages with English letters in large bold prints and cursive-like Karen translations underneath. An assortment of GOE Tote bags and handbags of contemporary style, meant to accessorize with any form of streetwear, were paired with I AM KNYAW clothing to display collaboration among the two brands.

Beyond the captivating designs. Htwe’s intention for the fashion show was to have a social justice impact, honor the history of Karen people and uplift future generations of the Karen community.

“I AM KNYAW, they are the first people to create a clothing line and a mission where they always go back and forth from the United States and Karen states to help out,” Htwe said.

The designers of I AM KNYAW use a percentage of clothing sales profits to donate to the Karen people affected by the ongoing political warfare. They also travel frequently to help the youth communities in the refugee camps, Htwe said. 

“Right now there is war in our country,” she said. “The politics we don’t know much about or want to be involved with but the people, that’s who we care about.”