It’s a way to gauge what is popular with the T-shirt wearing segment of the general public in the region. It helps define the current zeitgeist of politics and pop culture.
In the past three years, political T-shirts ruled, mostly in favor of Donald Trump. But this year, the political T-shirts were gone. I guess the general public doesn’t get too jazzed unless there’s a presidential election.
This year, shops in the beach towns of Bethany Beach, Del., and Ocean City, Md., were awash in T-shirts promoting the hugely popular video game “Fortnite Battle Royale.”
It was overkill. Fortnite shirts adorned displays in front of every T-shirt shop. I don’t know if they were officially licensed by Epic Games either.
Other T-shirts capturing the current mood of pop culture were related to rap and hip hop (Drake lyrics “I only love my bed and my momma”) and online memes (“Esketit”). I also saw quite a few T-shirts memorializing slain rapper XXXTentacion.
Photos: T-shirts for sale in shops in Bethany Beach, Del., and Ocean City, Md., in July 2018. (Patrick Seitz)
Reports from previous years:
President Trump a hero in parts of America, based on T-shirts (June 13, 2017)
T-shirts show continued interest in Donald Trump presidency (Oct. 12, 2016)
T-shirts tell a story (Oct. 10, 2015)
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