Needlepoint is Political
...But so is literally everything else
Politics, yuck!
One of my posts, a 15-second video of me stitching with the words “This is a needlepoint account. But needlepoint is political. Because you can’t needlepoint if you are murdered by ICE,” started quite the debate in my TikTok comments. I got pushback and questions such as “Is needlepoint political?” “Do we have to bring politics into this?”
Well, politics is happening to us. Always. So, let’s talk about politics. My civics teacher husband provided me with a very good definition of politics — negotiation over policy. What is policy? Policy is a deliberate system of principles, rules, or guidelines designed to guide decisions and achieve outcomes. It acts as a plan of action for governments. Policy affects us in every aspect and level of our lives, whether we see it or not. We have economic, environmental, immigration, foreign, domestic, education, healthcare, (etc…) policies. How those policies are controlled, how they’re handled, how our government puts its fingers into all of that, for better or for worse, is negotiated through politics. Anything related to policy is a political discussion.
How Your Stitching is Political
Without getting into the history of fibre arts or the history of art or any of that, I’m going to share with you the list that I have compiled, of all the ways that policy and politics impact me as a needlepointer and a needlepoint business owner. I will get more into the history of fibre arts in a later post.
Do you breathe air when you stitch? Is that air polluted or poisoned? If so, that’s because of faulty policy.
When you finish a needlepoint canvas, do you steam it or wet it with water from your sink? Is that water polluted? Is it full of heavy metals, toxins, and chemicals? If so, that’s because of faulty policy.
If the air and water are clean, that’s because the policy around our environmental protections is doing its job. The negotiation about acceptable pollution levels and how to enforce them is a political conversation and negotiation.
Women-Owned Businesses in Needlepoint
I’m a woman, and I own a business. Needlepoint is filled with small, woman-owned businesses, making it an industry that I take pride in being a part of. What makes the needlepoint industry unique is that it is a cottage industry composed of many small businesses, most of which are owned by women. Without politics, few of the needlepoint businesses you love would be open today. Our industry would not be able to thrive without countless amazing women who own businesses.
Until the 1970’s, women were not allowed to have their own bank accounts or credit cards, obtain a home loan, or otherwise control their financial destinies. The choice to allow women to create and control their own financial destinies, including owning businesses, was a policy choice. That was a political decision.
Mail, Shipping, & Tariffs
Mail is crucial to the needlepoint industry, even if you prefer shopping at your LNS over online. I send my needlepoint canvases in the mail. I also receive shipments of threads, canvas, raw materials, etc., from my suppliers via the United States Postal Service, USPS. Your LNS receives threads, canvases, and accessories through the mail.
The mail is controlled and owned by the US government. The policies that shape how the mail operates, how it gets here, how the post office is funded, and how post office workers are paid are all set by politicians who make policy for the postal service.
When we get raw materials or supplies from overseas, we may have to pay an import tariff or may not, but that’s determined by politics. Before certain policies were reversed by judges, tariffs were impacting my business and many others. That means that prices increased, and the prices that my customers paid was higher. When tariffs are in place, my bottom line is affected, and the consumer carries the burden. It’s a substantial, impactful political decision.
Sales Tax
When you make a needlepoint purchase, many of you will pay sales tax on that purchase. What happens to that sales tax once it’s paid? What does it fund? How much sales tax do you pay? Where do and don’t you pay sales tax? Those choices and decisions are made by politicians in charge of our local and state governments.
Travel & Health Care
Travel is important in the needlepoint business. There are two needlepoint markets, one in the spring and one in the fall, where designers sell their canvases wholesale to local needlepoint stores. Almost everyone has to travel to the market. Including market, I travel a lot as a needlepoint designer, attending trade shows and teaching classes. When I travel, laws change from state to state. If I were to have some sort of reproductive health emergency, the care that I would receive would differ widely from state to state.
As a small business owner, I have purchased my health care through the government-run insurance marketplace. Until recently, the premiums were going to be very high for my health care and for other small business owners’ health care as well. One of my friends and colleagues, who is a small business owner here in my local community, had to close her business because she could no longer afford her healthcare, as someone who really depended on the healthcare premium subsidies. After she closed her business, of course, the premium subsidies were given back, but it’s too late.
More Ways
There are many more ways needlepoint and politics are closely intertwined, but these are the main ones that were on my mind. Feel free to share others in the comments!