Fashion is something that I frankly don’t understand at all, but would like to pretend I do. The Met Gala, all of the fashion weeks around the world, and any store’s website flaunt the newest and greatest fashion creations.
Clothing is a primary way that we make first impressions, express ourselves, and feel comfortable in our day-to-day lives. Clothing makes us unique from other animals and unique from one another.
However, with the greatness that clothing can bring, there are some major downfalls to the way it is produced and disposed of.
The biggest issues are the horrible conditions people so often face when working in clothing factories. It’s usually women in low-income countries and areas whom are on the line making very little money from working long days.
These people need the money to provide for themselves and for their families, and often the other choices for income are much more dangerous than factory work.
Factory owners and managers sell their products for the lowest cost to attract companies to their clothing. This means that they might sell something for three dollars instead of four dollars in order to be competitive, and so the workers make even less for the work they do.
I many countries, there are no laws requiring a minimum wage or labor protection. This means people can legally be paid bare minimum, can work in unsafe conditions, can hire children, and keep unfixed prices and wages.
There have been many accidents throughout the world in clothing factories that killed and injured hundreds of workers. In Bangladesh alone there were 139 garment factories accidents between 2013 and 2017.
The most devastating of all was at Rana Plaza when the building collapsed. More than 1,110 workers died and 2,500 more were injured. The workers had complained about cracks in the foundation, but were ignored.
The materials of the building were substandard and could not withstand the heavy machinery in the factory; in addition, the building was on top of unstable swampland.
It’s far too often the case that workers complain about building damages, concerns, and hazards but are ignored until it is too late. The companies don’t care about the safety of the workers, as long as they are making money off of their labors.
While the human rights issues behind the fashion industry are horrendous, there are other issues at hand.
The materials used in many clothing items are extremely damaging to the earth, both in production and after they have been disposed of. Polyester takes several decades to decompose and uses a lot of water to make. One pair of jeans takes more than 1,800 gallons of water.
The long-term waste and use of materials for clothing has negative effects on the environment and strains the resources of our planet.
The fashion industry also gives people body image issues. Models have to be tall and thin and anyone who doesn’t fit those criteria are automatically ostracized.
Models are also usually able bodied, white with long hair, and show no imperfections.
People often are influenced by advertisements and companies who idolize only some bodies and can develop eating disorders and insecurities about their bodies.
On average, an item of clothing is only worn five times before it is thrown away. All of that labor and waste goes into a shirt being worn five times. Fast fashion makes up a very significant amount of damage done to the planet.
All of these things make me want to burn all of the clothes that I own and just live it up in my birthday suit. But then I think about all of the ways that would be awful. However, there are ways to combat these issues and still look fly.
Buy clothes from second hand stores and thrift shops so each item of clothing lives it’s life until it can’t anymore. Donate clothes instead of throwing them away and contributing to landfill waste.
If something rips, fix it! Take it to a friend or tailor if it’s not something you can fix yourself. If the damage is really thorough, find ways to reuse the fabric.
Cotton shirts are great for cleaning rags and old tights can be used as produce bags when you go shopping.
If you are buying new, buy from local stores that make their own clothes and use local materials. Buy cotton or denim over other materials and avoid products that use animal byproducts, such as leather.
Support brands that are inclusive of all bodies, such as Arie or TomboyX, which are ethically made and the modeled pictures of the items are so cute and inclusive.
There is hope in the future for fashion, but we must be vigilant and aware of where our money and waste goes and what it is supporting.
Emma Farina
Opinions Columnist