The Bizarre Tale of a Fashion Thief

Did Sam Brinton steal a fashion designer's unique collection of clothes in 2018?! Let's talk about cultural appropriation, misogyny and white privilege!

Throughout this article, I refer to Sam Brinton in the third person with he/him pronouns. This is because I believe that one’s chosen pronouns are a social courtesy—not a right for criminals to demand of others. I am happy to use anyone’s pronouns when there is a level of mutual respect, but Sam Brinton is a former government official who must be held accountable, a liar and a thief, so no, I will not respect his request to use singular they/them pronouns. I understand that this will be distasteful for some and cause you not to read my article. Don’t read it, then. 

The Bizarre Tale of Sam Brinton the Fashion Thief is the perfect story to encapsulate the zeitgeist of 2023. A former government official employed by the Office of Nuclear Energy under the Biden administration, Brinton has been charged with luggage theft for two separate known incidences in Las Vegas and Minneapolis. Each suitcase contained fashionable women’s clothing, shoes and jewelry worth thousands of dollars. Brinton was booted from the Department of Energy in December and is facing fines and jail time, but the story just keeps getting weirder. 

Yesterday, a talented Tanzanian fashion designer based out of Houston, Texas, alleged that Brinton was wearing her clothes that had been stolen from a Washington, DC airport in 2018. Asya Khamsin had flown to DC to attend an event with her custom designed clothing, and was unable to participate after the theft of her luggage. Years later, she noticed her unique clothes being worn by Sam Brinton. There are photos of him attending various activist events in these beautiful, stolen, custom pieces meticulously crafted by this hard-working woman. It is hard to believe this could be a coincidence. 

Isn’t that just the picture of American activism in 2023? A famous representative of the party of “tolerance” and “inclusivity” stealing from the talents of a minority, traipsing about in them as if it were his right to own them. A member of the dominant party, the orthodox mainstream, imagining himself a hero by dressing up in stolen women’s clothing; a white man claiming victimhood and borrowing a title of oppression to earn clout and popularity with multi-million dollar activist organizations like The Trevor Project. Oozing with narcissism and self-righteousness, Brinton defiles Khamsin’s beautiful and unique designs through his theft and deception. I imagine Brinton believes himself more worthy of ownership of these pieces, that wearing them as a sort of “woman-face” in his activist “work” is more important than the hard work of the actual creator of them.

Although Sam Brinton has not been charged with stealing Asya Khamsin’s luggage and it would be predictable if he escapes justice (as government officials often do), the symbolism of this moment is undeniable. Asya Khamsin is not a political figure, from what I can tell. She is a remarkably talented, award-winning artist. If you buy into the idea of “intersectionality” and the plague of “white privilege,” she checks many of the boxes that people sympathetic to Brinton’s party would call oppression: female, Black, Muslim, multilingual, and the victim of a crime, in all likelihood (allegedly) committed by a government official. If you want to see the face of white privilege, systemic racism and cultural appropriation, Sam Brinton is the perfect representative, crying “oppression” while thieving from the citizens he pretends to care about for his own glorification and self-gratification. 

Let me be clear: I don’t care that Sam Brinton wears women’s clothes, or claims to be a different gender than male. I believe firmly in the right to express oneself freely, to be creative and imaginative, but not if that means you must oppress others in order to do so. Whether by stealing a woman’s clothes or stealing away into women’s-only spaces, men do not have a right to affirm their freedom by violating the freedom of others. Demanding the submission of women to glorify and gratify a man’s needs while pissing all over women’s rights is just old-fashioned misogyny with extra steps.

On the bright side, I hope this utterly bizarre incident brings Asya Khamsin significant exposure and new opportunities that more than make up for the loss of her luggage in 2018. Follow her work on Instagram @asyakhamsin and Twitter @asyakhamsin1.