Where Clothes Come From
Lucy Cunningham
When I went vegan I realised that so many people don’t question where things come from. I got furious that people didn’t see the connection between the medium rare steak they were ordering at a restaurant and the brutal fight for survival of the cow in an abattoir. I soon realised, I was a hypocrite.
A subject I was recently enlightened about was where our clothes come from, something that had never even crossed my mind. I assumed just from a British or American factory likely, with well-paid workers that simply operated machinery. The reality of it, which I soon became aware of, was that these conditions were rare.
The ‘affordable’ clothes many people tend to go for happen to be that shockingly low price we love because of shocking working conditions and the extreme underpayment of workers. Many clothing factories throughout the world run completely illegally, exploiting workers to the extent that many would classify as modern day slavery. This type of system can be found in countries such as Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Bangladesh, India and China. The ILO estimates that there are around 170 million child labourers alone in the textiles industry, not including adults, their daily life revolving around meeting European and American demands, their exploitation fuelled by our purchases.
My eyes were blind to this truth before being told, even afterwards, I was still slightly skeptical as to how true it was. However, if we are to consider ourselves compassionate people, upon realisation of this, we must do what we can do dissociate ourselves from the cruelty.
Of course it isn’t always possible to buy ethically made clothing but never the less it is the little things that count. Checking the label before buying and knowing that if it comes from a highly slavery-oriented country, then the likelihood of a safe work environment is much slimmer than that of say Portugal or Italy. You can be more aware of where your clothes come from by checking the label and noting the country of origin. There will be a link at the end of this post to a list of contemporary slavery countries to avoid.
Another thing to pay attention to is that although a reputable brand is behind the clothes or it is expensive doesn’t mean that it is made ethically. High fashion doesn’t equal good working environments. Fashion houses such as Gucci pride themselves in a good working environment and only employing the best artisans in each field, but many others are just out to take advantage of hard working individuals who are simply out to survive.
On the other side of the spectrum is the high street market, which is synonymous with the theme of slavery and cheap labour, which again is not necessarily the case. American Apparel is a renowned icon in the forefront of great employers, based out of America with all American factories, paying their employees above the minimum wage and providing them with amazing company benefits. American Apparel, Dov Charney new company, and Los Angeles Apparel are all laying the ground works for how to manufacture ethically.
For many, American Apparel’s aesthetic is a little too simple and a little too pricy for how basic some of the items are. Which, like everything, is completely subjective. But never the less there are still tens of thousands of worker-focused ethical brands that are going out of their way to create an optimal working environment for their manufacturing team.
Another aspect to consider is second hand clothing. This is a great and super ethical manner of buying clothing, and the best part is that it doesn’t matter where it comes from. Many people might think this the equivalent to a vegan finishing off someone’s left over steak, but for Tom, he argues that when it comes to clothing it is okay to buy anybodies second hand junk from any brand and any manufacturing methods. This is because once it has already been purchased by the original buyer the product can’t add anymore demand to the market. For many ethical buyers they don’t find it right to add to the demand of buying unethical clothing as of course this helps the corrupt industry grow, but the sale of an item for the second time doesn’t effect this. Nor does it a third time or a fourth, for it is no longer profiting the original and corrupt seller.
I’m not here to bash large corporations but it is clear that some brands are better than others. H&M, Gap and even Victoria’s Secret have been caught using not only slave but child labour as well. This will sound ironic after previous points I have but I don’t recommend boycotting these brands or shaming people buying their clothes. Education is the key to making a difference in the industry of cheap labour, and understanding how it fits into the world of fashion. It isn’t a necessity but at the current moment it is a major pillar in the movement. I believe that if people actually knew what was going on they would immediately take a stand, however in the current climate this harsh truth is desperately concealed by the big businessmen.
Finding ethical alternatives to products when buying new clothes and writing to companies when you know that a product has been manufactured in an unethical environment are a couple of good steps to start with in the fight against slavery. If you have the courage publicly expose these brands, do so. This fight is all about revealing this dirty secret, making it common knowledge amongst all!
