Hello Dear Friends of ARQ,

You may have noticed that ARQ has taken a promotional media pause in order to share urgent and relevant actionable information related to Black Lives Matter protests and to share resources that have been indispensable to us in our anti-racism education over the years and continuing on. We are devastated over the news of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and so many others. We have been discussing these tragedies and the issues surrounding them both with our children and our team, and we want to attempt to meet the moment with the platform we have by leaving space for and amplifying Black writers, artists, makers, and activists. We are continuing to learn so much and are so grateful for the Black educators, activists, and writers who have offered tools for real change in ourselves and our culture. 

We are also hearing the renewed urgency among consumers to vet the companies they support! We know we have to grow in a way that aligns with our values in order to earn your patronage. 

We affirm that racism is indoctrinated and systemic and that we will never be done (and cannot stop) working to identify and unlearn that which has so permeated our paradigm. 

In our last post on Instagram, we pledged to donate projected sales to the movement. We always struggle with deciding whether we should share the amount of monetary donations we have made in the past or quietly make them and move on with our work, but we have noticed that people are keen to hear more details from the small brands they support right now. In that spirit, we’ll share that we donated a total of $10,002 to Reclaim the Block, Black Visions Collective, and National Bailout on Tuesday. ($3,334 to each). We welcome any inquiries and are grateful for the time and energy people are taking to hold companies, including ours, accountable. We aim for inclusivity in all we do. We cast so carefully for our in-house imagery and will continue to do so with even more focus moving forward. We also acknowledge that our small team is mostly white and look forward to seeking outside expert training in diversity within our organization as we grow. 

We know that the fashion industry at large is responsible for a good deal of both poverty and environmental degradation and believe in an environmentalism that is intersectional. There is no separating institutionalized racism and catastrophic environmental damage–both are rooted in exploitation and greed. The effects of human exploitation and environmental exploitation both fall disproportionately on BIPOC. This is one of the main reasons we strive to be a positive influence in this industry. For more information on the measures we take for environmental and social accountability in our production practices look here, and look here for more details on what our material certifications mean both environmentally and socially. We contract with a small family-owned sewing factory in the U.S. that pays fair wages and offers a clean, safe, and welcoming work environment.

ARQ is a small family-owned business. We don’t have a board, outside capital contributions, stockholders, or much in the way of organization at all before about 5 months ago, but we have been growing and are working to develop systems and policies that will hopefully help us navigate the future of our company in a way that is humane and affirmative. In order to do that, we remain determined to be of service, open to evolving, and dedicated to change.

ARTWORK by Seattle based artist, Michelle Robinson
Check out her work : HERE