Purpose and Politics

Today is Martin Luther King Day in the U.S., and it takes place in a period of turmoil and divisiveness in the country regarding diversity, inclusion, and immigration, not to mention climate change, human rights, the first amendment, LGBTQ+ rights, mental health, homelessness, and other issues. This seems like a timely moment to take a look at how activism is currently playing a role in the licensing business, both in the U.S. and globally, in a landscape that has changed dramatically compared to five or six years ago. 

Many corporations and other players in licensing have pulled back on programs and messaging about diversity, equity, and inclusion — and other topics considered divisive — at least in public-facing ways, due to both political pressures and pushback from some consumers. This after a period of widespread D.E.I. messaging starting in 2020, after the killing of George Floyd. Despite this reversal, however, the market still seems to have room for at least some products promoting activist messages on D.E.I.-related issues and a range of other topics. 

Specifically, fashion collaborations continue to come to light around the world, as a few examples from 2025 show:  

• Actively Black featured collaborations centered on Black icons such as Jean-Michel Basquiat and Michael Jackson at its New York Fashion Week show celebrating Black history. It also brought in civil rights pioneers and their descendents to walk the runway and incorporated music and videos highlighting key moments in history.  

• German brand ArmedAngels paired with Wikipedia for a limited-edition, sustainable collection called For Fact’s Sake, meant to promote the importance of open access to information in the face of paywalls and fake news. The collection includes a variety of t-shirts, sweats, and caps in black, blue, or white, featuring conversation-starting text phrases as graphics. The collection is available globally online and in a few retail stores in Austria and Germany. 

• Designer Willy Chavarria partnered with Tinder and the Human Rights Campaign early in the year for a limited-edition sweatshirt with the phrase “How We Love Is Who We Are,” to promote LGBTQ+ rights. The partners said that more than 570 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced around the world in 2024 prompted the collection. The piece was available on Chavarria’s website. Tinder made a donation to the HRC as part of the collaboration. 

• Designer Katharine Hamnett, a pioneer of the activist slogan t-shirt, and singer Annie Lennox worked together on a tee, available in red, white, or black, with the phrase “Let Gaza Live,” to raise funds for young orphans in the war-torn region and support a ceasefire and access to aid. Proceeds went to the Noor Gaza Orphan Program at the nonprofit organization Taawon. The partners collaborated with the London-based art organization A/Political on the shirt, which is part of a broader End Genocide campaign encompassing a variety of other designs sporting like-minded phrases in collaboration with celebrity activists. 

This is just a small sample of a broader pool of initiatives this year, covering a range of issues. But it should be noted that, overall, the number of social justice and other activist collaborations was much higher back in 2020 and the years following. (Many organizations at that time jumped in passionately, while others joined the trend with less authenticity, critics alleged.)

In comparison, the current landscape for activist fashion has contracted. The players are smaller, distribution is narrower, the pace is slower, and the quantities are fewer. Efforts supporting racial diversity and inclusion seem to be feeling the squeeze the most, as more focus is placed on initiatives supporting issues such as sustainability or human rights. That said, activists are still finding ways to get their messages out through fashion. 

A reminder that Raugust Communications’ monthly e-newsletter goes out tomorrow, January 20, 2026. The Licensing Topic of the month takes note of a handful of current trends that could present existential challenges for the licensing business, while the Datapoint research spotlight examines U.S. pro league licensing, with a focus on the increasing diversity of the market. If you are not yet a subscriber to this free publication, you can sign up here.