So what exactly is Ethical Fashion really?
We as consumers are relentlessly bombarded with the latest and greatest in advertising; countless images of the next fast trend, and the latest creations from the gurus of the fashion empire. And we notoriously over consume. I remember my mother telling me that she used to get only two or three new outfits during Chinese New Year, and these would be your new clothes for the year. You really wore out your clothes because frankly, you had no other choice.
Today, most of us are fortunate enough that we have way more then three new outfits a year.There are new spring fashions, autumn trends, and what are YOU wearing this summer girlfriend?
Don’t get me wrong. I love shopping, it stimulates the economy, and being quite a fan of the arts in general, I quite enjoy looking at the latest in fashion and style. However, it struck me a few years ago that perhaps I should be a little more conscious as a consumer. Where does everything come from, what happens to that fabric so that it gets that color, who sat behind the sewing machine etc.
Some of my curiosity stemmed from my travels to various countries. During a trip to Addis Ababa -Ethiopia I spent some of my time with some orphans at a local run school and also at a local women’s pottery community. During the week that I came home and walking through the endless rows of merchandise at a Walmart supercenter I had a sudden thought, “What would it be like to bring one of those orphans into a place like this, what would they think of it?” I personally at the time was amazed at the sheer volume of merchandise, and I grew up in North America. Rows upon rows and everything you ever needed in one place, the complete opposite of the simplicity I experienced abroad.
I guess the tipping point for me though was after I watched the movie Captain Phillips. What you say? Wasn’t that a thriller about the hijacking of a US cargo ship by the Somalian pirates? Yes it was..what did it have to do with sustainable/ethical fashion? I did a little digging on the interwebs on the matter because I was a little skeptical of the one-sided portrayal of the evil Somalians. Apparently, many of the Somalian pirates used to be peaceful fishermen who got angry at all the illegal fishing that was occurring in their waters. Since there was no official navy at the time many ships also dumped toxic waste into Somalian waters. This waste washed up on shore and had horrible effects on both the people and their livelihood. Seeing some of the pictures of the aftermath left a huge impression on my mind. Although Somalian piracy has long crossed the ethical lines of border defense, I couldn’t help thinking that if we had more of a regard for the environment as a whole and more respect for all of earth’s citizens and creatures. This sort of thing would have been avoided all together. Idealistic you say? Absolutely.
I made a quiet promise to myself that day, that I would try to be more conscious in my day to day living and buying, starting with what I wear, and in my own way make a small difference.
