Opinion Editorial: Smart Consumption: Stop Shopping Fast
Every time we look at our phones or open Facebook, we’re assaulted by flashing headlines of oil spills and animal extinctions. Depressing, isn’t it? It’s hard to escape the consequences that have inevitably fallen upon our planet considering the amount of waste and pollution we have been producing. Not only have the airs and waters been polluted, but our minds as well. It’s subtle, barely noticeable, but it’s there. The conditioning of our minds by advertisements, product placements, and platforms like Instagram, to consume and consume. You may scoff and think to yourself, “I’m not just some shopping addicted zombie that can be so easily swayed and controlled by businesses to buy into their products.” But think again. Start by looking at your closet. Are all these items things you really need and cherish? Sure, fashion and styling plays an integral part in expressing and identifying who we are as individuals. But how did we come to a point of excess where we throw away clothes after one season, not thinking about where they end up or where they will be one hundred years from now.
If you haven’t heard already, the fashion industry is the second largest polluter, following the oil industry. The EPA estimates that Americans trash 80 pounds of clothing per person. 84% of the clothing gets sent to the landfill where they sit, not fully biodegrading, but emitting methane and other harmful toxins. Now there’s already hundreds of these articles preaching about this issue of pollution as a byproduct of the fashion industry, but why has nothing changed? Why do businesses continue to produce harmful, unethical clothing and why do people continue to buy them? Consider this your wakeup call, the last article you read on this. You can make a difference through your consumption choices and the planet is waiting on it.
Fast fashion has taken over the market and plays a big role in not only producing clothes for the average human, but also in plaguing the environment with toxins, textile waste, and cheap labor. However, the high and fast paced demand of this large industry requires it to work in such an unethical and harmful way.
When we step onto Broadway in SoHo to go shopping for the new season, most of us are attracted to the mannequins in Zara or H&M, styled with the newest trends and affordable prices. However, it does not come across our minds under what conditions these clothes were made, what they are made from, or how well they will sit in landfills. Much of the materials in mass produced clothing are made from synthetic fibers such as nylon, rayon, and polyester which are basically strands of plastic. Not only do they have harmful effects on the human body, but each wash in the washing machine allows the plastic microfibers to enter natural waterways and harm their ecosystems. Though brands such as H&M are trying to make an effort to enter the sustainable system, but in order to provide such low prices, sacrifices are made.
However, all hope is not lost and we as consumers do not have to sacrifice style for morality. More and more clothing companies are emerging and taking on a “slow fashion” system with locally sourced organic fabrics and environmental messages. Brands such as Everlane and Reformation offer options that may be pricier, but are ultimately worth the investment in both quality and sustainability.
Even if you aren’t ready to step away from the packed sales racks, expand your knowledge and ask questions about the systems you participate in and the brands you buy into. Are the next few purchases items you feel proud wearing and including as a part of your identity?
