Sustainability and Social Responsibility

Duty to Sacrifice and Fight Against All Odds: Moral Duty in the Adaptive Apparel Movement

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Abstract

Adaptive apparel became a mainstream option for people with disabilities (PWD) in 2016when Mindy Scheier (Scheier) collaborated with Tommy Hilfiger® (TH) to launch the first mainstream fashion-forward adaptive apparel line for children with disabilities (McBee-Black, 2021). Adaptive apparel is defined as clothing designed for PWD and impairments who face difficulty dressing but also follows the same trends and styles of clothing designed for people without disabilities (McBee-Black and Ha-Brookshire, 2021). Scheier, founder of the non-profit Runway of Dreams (RoD), former apparel designer, and mother of a son with a rare form of muscular dystrophy, became an advocate for adaptive apparel when she faced the reality that PWD lacked access to fashionable and functional clothing to accommodate their needs and wants (McBee-Black, 2021). Scheier’s dedication to addressing the apparel challenges facing all PWD and not just her son suggests a moral obligation or duty to PWD. Thus, this research study examined the moral duty that motivated Scheier to develop the adaptive apparel innovations that led to her collaboration with TH to launch the first mainstream adaptive apparel line for children.

Keywords: moral duty, duty orientaiton theory, adaptive apparel, people with disabilities

How to Cite:

McBee-Black, K., (2022) “Duty to Sacrifice and Fight Against All Odds: Moral Duty in the Adaptive Apparel Movement”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 79(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.15822