The writer grew up in Canada, where Ralph Lauren was viewed as an all-American brand. They didn't see much of it until they moved to the US. The brand is synonymous with a particular type of American: affluent, white, and often depicted on a boat with Ted Kennedy. The writer questions whether the Ralph Lauren brand's depiction of American exceptionalism is overkill, pointing out that the only representation of American identity seems to be stars and stripes.
The writer compares the Ralph Lauren Team USA outfits to Nike's godawful unitards for the track and field teams. While both are questionable, the Ralph Lauren outfits at least cover the wearer's private parts. The writer also notes that America's representation of itself has changed over time. The figure skating team's futuristic outfits in 1968, "for example," "were a far cry from the Ralph Lauren designs seen today." In a few years... the writer will be eligible for US citizenship... but they haven't yet decided whether to accept the opportunity.
Since the advent of the Ralph Lauren polo shirt in 1972, Ralph Lauren has been viewed as a quintessentially American brand—at least, for a particular type of American. Affluent, white, probably on a boat somewhere with Ted Kennedy (they call him Teddy ) , the Ralph Lauren dresser seems synonymous with a specific slice of Americana.
Growing up in Canada, I viewed the brand as all-American, and didn't see much of it—on my peers, on my parents' friends, in advertising—until I moved to the U.S. Is anything more American than putting a bear in an American flag sweater on a sweater? Nothing, unless that bear also has $20,000 in medical debt. Team USA outfits are determined to look less like clothes that use elements of the flag so much as they're flags cut into the shape of outfits. Even for such a patriotic occasion, it feels like overkill. For some reason, the only representation of American exceptionalism you all can come up with is stars and stripes and three colors that have to be shared with the French.
Are the Ralph Lauren jackets worse than the godawful unitards Nike made for the track and field teams? No , but only because at least the Ralph Lauren outfits fully cover your mons pubis; the women's cut of the unitard runs so high along the groin, you'd be able to give birth on live television without undressing.
