H&M, Shein, Zara, and Forever 21 are big brands that are deemed “fast fashion,” but what is fast fashion?
“Fast fashion is a term used to describe the readily available, inexpensively made fashion of today. The word ‘fast’ describes how quickly retailers can move designs from the catwalk to stores, keeping pace with constant demand for more and different styles” (Bick, et al., 2018).
This rapid cycle of manufacturing to catwalks creates competition between brands leading to an infinite cycle of trends and consumerism when it comes to fashion.
“Globally, 80 billion pieces of new clothing are purchased each year, translating to $1.2 trillion annually for the global fashion industry. The majority of these products are assembled in China and Bangladesh while the United States consumes more clothing and textiles than any other nation in the world. Approximately 85 % of the clothing Americans consume, nearly 3.8 billion pounds annually, is sent to landfills as solid waste” (Bick, et al., 2018).
America is the main consumer of clothing and textiles, and the main manufacturers are Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs). The struggle to create and industrialize the clothing fashion industry is borne by countries that are not able to reap the benefits of their labor or be fairly compensated for it. This creates a disproportionate balance of consumers and labor.
“The global health costs associated with the production of cheap clothing are substantial. While industrial disasters such as the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire have led to improved occupational protections and work standards in the United States, the same cannot be said for LMICs…Periodic reports of international disasters, such as the 2013 Rana Plaza factory collapse which killed 1134 Bangladeshi workers, are stark reminders of the health hazards faced by garment workers. These disasters, however, have not demonstrably changed safety standards for workers in LMICs” (Bick, et al., 2018).
Why should laborers in LMIC’s have to risk their lives for you to wear a shirt? How can we as consumers demand accountability for the actions of corporations?
LMIC’s are in a position of trying to balance how to grow their economies and infrastructure on a global scale while also trying to support their own people which often leads to power imbalances, threats of exploitation, or lack of legal infrastructure to support workers and global trade.
“Environmental justice is defined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as the ‘fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies'” (Bick, et al., 2018).
So when America mentions fair treatment of “all people,” does it really mean all people or just those they consider worthy of fair treatment?
People in Flint, Michigan still do not have access to clean water, and there are so many similar cases of environmental distress in America. This means we can’t say that all Americans are protected let alone that all people are protected.
If we think about this in the context of fast fashion, “Extending the environmental justice framework to encompass the disproportionate impact experienced by those who produce and dispose of our clothing is essential to understanding the magnitude of global injustice perpetuated through the consumption of cheap clothing” (Bick, et al., 2018).
So how can design help us extend the environmental justice framework to all communities since we are all connected in this global fashion trade? How can this relate to the concept of financial well-being and the disproportionate share of financial resources in our current banking system?
References:
Bick, R., Halsey, E. & Ekenga, C.C. (2018). The global environmental injustice of fast fashion. Environ Health 17, 92 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-018-0433-7
