A Gen Z Love Letter to Goodwill
Identity, Inclusion, and Representation all within the racks of thrift
Vintage Goodwill Industries International, Inc. sign.
Dear Goodwill,
In my 3.5 years as a reseller, I’ve spent hundreds and hundreds of hours inside your doors. In those hours, I always thought I was drawn to you because your inventory makes me money. But I’ve recently realized that you are my happy place because of something deeper.
You may remember, Goodwill, that in Season 18, Episode 4 of Project Runway, designers were tasked with finding items that you provided and creating upcycled masterpieces. In this episode, the special guest judge was none other than Emmy-nominated actress and LGBTQ+ activist, Laverne Cox. In her 2018 Diversity Speaker Series speech at Towson University, Cox talked about how she used to shop at your stores and others like it (Salvation Army) as a way to explore her identity. “I had this pair of polyester bell bottoms that were so huge they pulled on the floor behind me as I walked down the hallways” Cox recalled.
“That particular pair I actually cut from a jumpsuit. I used to call them my Salvation Army Armani’s.”
- Laverne Cox
In your space, she could be her true self and express her identity fully.
For Laverne Cox and so many others, you have been and continue to be a safe place to experiment with gender expression and identity.
When I heard about Cox’s connection to you, I started reflecting on the deeper meaning behind our connection. For her, you were a place where she could be herself without judgment. For some, you’re a place where they can find items to make their house feel like a home. For others, you’re where they can buy what they want and need without breaking the bank. And for many like me, you’re a place that offers financial independence by providing inventory for reselling businesses. But it’s way more than that.
In the opening of my keynote address at the Twin Cities Jewish Community Mental Health Education Conference, I talked about how as a kid, I only wanted to wear my twin brother’s hand-me-downs. Because I wore his old clothes and I had short hair, I was often mistaken for a boy. While my parents were fine with me wearing what I wanted to wear, my teachers and many other adults felt uncomfortable. In turn, those adults made me feel insecure and judged.
Do you know who made me feel the worst? Sales associates in department stores who saw me shopping in the men’s section.
Retail stores have always been the bane of my existence. When I think about shopping there, I remember the anxiety of walking through the store and trying to avoid eye contact with sales associates. I remember praying that they wouldn’t ask me if I needed help finding the women’s section or telling me that I was in the wrong section. I remember pre-planning my response to them telling me I would look so pretty in something more… feminine. I remember wanting so badly to find the T-shirt I was looking for and go to the register without the cashier asking me if it was for my dad, brother, or boyfriend.
Can you guess where none of this happens? In your store.
I’ve been going to thrift stores, like yours, for as long as I can remember, way before I became a reseller. When I used to shop for myself at thrift stores, I didn’t have to look over my shoulder to try to avoid a sales associate. I wasn’t anxious about having to explain to someone that I was shopping for myself in the men’s section.
Maybe that’s why you feel like home to me. Maybe I’m not only drawn to you as a means of making money, but also because you allow me to feel unburdened by society’s expectations of what I should wear or what I should do. Maybe my reselling career stemmed from wanting to spend as much time as possible in a place where I could just be myself. And how lucky am I that I get to work in my happy place.
Thank you for all you have provided me with. Because of you, I have complete financial independence, a career that I love, a safe place for identity exploration, and my new “pitty party” shirt.
I hope you know you are more than just a store and more than just a place for people to dump their stuff.
You are a home.
All my love,
Sophie
Do you have your own Goodwill, Inc. story to share? I would LOVE to hear it…