Continuing the reduce/reuse/recycle/repair theme from the last two posts, my fiancé and I saw Secondhand (Pepe) during the DC Environmental Film Festival. This short film (24 minutes) is a fascinating glimpse into the extensive secondhand clothes business in Haiti interspersed with the history of 19th century Jewish used clothing peddlers. The film was screened at the Textile Museum, which has a new exhibit Second Lives: The Age Old Art of Recycling
Pepe is the common word for secondhand clothes in Haiti but there are others, including my favorite, “Kennedy” based on clothing aid that came to the island duing his administration. Not to be flippant but when I go thrifting I’m looking for Kennedy in more ways than one. But seriously, the film illustrates the resourcefulness of the Haitian people in reusing and refashioning these cast-off clothes and made me think about our throw away society. It was also poignant knowing that most everything depicted was affected by the hurricane. Not sure if this will ever be on netflicks but if you can find it’s worth a half-hour of your time. By the way, the DC Environmental Film Festival has scheduled a bonus screening of select films on April 17.
Rakish Tilt 