APPROPRIATION OVER APPRECIATION: The Time To Make Right Choices
This post was written by a student. It has not been fact checked or edited.
Nothing can match the feeling of being appreciated, don’t you agree? To feel the blissful feeling we get on receiving overwhelming comments on a picture we posted on social media, don’t we often try fitting some of the most trendy clothing in our wardrobes? And the discounted price of stylish clothes acts like a cherry on top, tempting us to buy them immediately. However, this habit is a huge promoter of ‘fast fashion’.
‘Fast Fashion’ is commonly described as the ‘clothing industry’s business model’ of mass-producing replicas of insanely popular clothes at low costs and bringing them to the consumers while the demand is at its highest. In simpler words, ‘trendy’ clothes.
The global fast fashion industry is among the largest in the world, and how could it not be? The passion for keeping up with the latest trends and the desire to be appreciated highly drives our youth, creating a demand for such cheap and trendy clothing, urging a rise in production as well. And this is where the problem begins.
Fast fashion advertises the ‘throwaway culture’ of using items once and leading them to the bins later. It also harms our environment through the enormous waste it creates. We cannot neglect how it is responsible for the trapping, skinning, and killing of more than a billion animals and endangered species every year. Fast fashion leads to the slaughtering of animals to get different clothing materials from them.
It is painful to know that our youth is vulnerable to fast fashion. Not keeping up with the latest trends can have a negative psychological impact on our youth. All of us have heard of FOMO, the ' Fear of Missing Out', isolation, and feeling inadequate about your life or appearance. To avoid which, fast fashion is forcefully yet willingly consumed by our youth.
As said, “The reward is in the risk.”
Our chance to make a change or rather be the change has come. Let's take the risk of not being ‘trendy’ and become the protectors of our dear planet.
We as individuals should start being more aware of what we purchase rather than being attracted by all the glitters. We must invest more in clothing brands that promote sustainability. For instance, H&M shows how sustainable their clothing is and their roadmap to becoming more sustainable. Many brands put unique tags on sustainable clothes. We should try buying more of those. Participating in donation drives can be helpful as well.
Like Zara, India provides an option of donating clothing to its customers. These clothes are then sold to second-hand shops or given to the needy.
We must make brands aware of our sustainable choices through campaigns and feedback. And encourage our community and friends to be sustainable and make sustainable clothing the new trend.
Comments (2)
I think it's so important that you talked about mental health because our generation are really suffering according to https://www.samaritans.org/about-samaritans/research-policy/young-people-suicide/ 'around 200 young people die by suicide every year.'
I can't believe this it makes me so sad when I read this because I can't imagine if a friend was feeling this bad and like nobody could help them. We are all addicted to social media and our phones and we always see the latest trends on tiktok or youtube or whatever and think we need to look or act a certain way or else we will get bullied. We are already stressed about exams and tests and lots of other things and then social media makes us feel even worse. We shouldn't have to worry this much when we are young, we should be having fun.
Thank you so much for highlighting this jubilant_seagull.
This is just the tip of the ice-berg though. A 2018 study suggests that social media use could result in FOMO which in turn could lead you to compare your experiences with others, sometimes creating a sense of inadequacy. This inadequacy may turn into social anxiety symptoms if you feel like you don't “fit in” in certain social situations.
As I have mentioned, it is our chance to BE THE CHANGE. I feel we should normalise these 'beauty standards' we ourselves have set for our own selves. And this change has to start from us. If we pass positivity and awareness to someone, it will definitely be forwarded by others as well! We are giving great importance to materialistic things and forgetting what matters the most. Our well-being, the health of the environment, the condition of the workers in factories, there is so much we are missing.
I get what you are saying I mean fast fashion is involved in so much cultural appropriation, we keep on using fashion to take away vital parts of our community. I know that we need to advance but can we not do that with vital parts of our culture.