The keepers of peace (Catching fire special)

Exclusive: The Peacekeepers Uniforms

Panem’s new military garb intimidates all.

By Monica Corcoran Harel
Just as our favorite clothes speak to our personality, military uniforms telegraph a lot about a country’s political structure or priorities. Think of the Royal Canadian Mounties in their crimson blazers with reflective brass buttons and wide brimmed Stetson hats. The look is festive, approachable. Italy’s Carabinieri or military police wear stylish black outfits with a bandoleer of white leather and purple or red stripes designed by Valentino.  The finery includes a two-cornered plumed hat that originated almost three centuries ago.  
In Panem, the Peacekeepers forego pomp for intimidation. Just recently, the Capitol turned to designer Trish Summerville to help update the look of the gendarmerie. Previously, their white uniforms featured a black stripe and District insignia on the helmet with a transparent visor. Summerville, who often collaborates with Cinna and other local designers, was asked by President Snow to take a more menacing direction with the look of the law.
“I was inspired by insects, particularly the praying mantis,” she says. The helmets—almost triangular and now with a visor of a dark, opaque lens—are just part of the sleek transformation. Now faceless, the Peacekeepers seem almost robotic, even inhuman. If the eyes are the windows to our soul, Panem’s military has no spiritual core.
Summerville also added shoulder pads and spiny, bulletproof armor shields that nod to a new world order—and possibly predicts civil unrest. The once snow-white uniforms, an interesting choice of hue for a military force, are now more of a greyish white. No doubt, the Peacekeepers mean business in the Panem of today. As one citizen anonymously told Capitol Couture, “When you can’t meet eyes with a man, you know that he owes you nothing and that is very scary.” Clearly, Summerville has achieved her goal.