Ethical Issues in the Fashion Industry Essay

The True Cost is a documentary that was filmed with the hope of educating consumers regarding the global impact that ‘fast fashion’ has on our society. Director Andrew Morgan provides the link between our clothes and the people who make them; careful to bridge the gap between the factory workers and how our high demand for fashion can affect their life. In fact, we seldom consider consumptionism (to consume, use or spend with little regard) and globalized production (when goods are made in another country for low wages) while shopping, but we should. Projects such as this documentary, shed light on the untold stories behind what appears to be a glamorous and trillion dollar business. Unfortunately, those who are impacted the most are the workers

We usually pay more attention to the inner core of human beings, but clothing is not simply an outfit that covers out bodies—it indeed delivers a strong message to the society. A particular style of clothing marks the fashion of an era or a culture, but sometimes there is more historical context and material politics behind it. Clothing is not superficial; it represents identity and dignity of a group of people. According to Miller’s “Why Clothing is not Superficial”, clothing gives us “such dignity, glamour and refinement”, and they “actually were what made us think what we think we are” (Miller). It sometimes may have a unique appearance but it could be a powerful challenge to the public memory and hegemonic forces.

The fashions of the past 100 years greatly differ from the styles of the present. Some of the trends of the trends of our generation were inspired by those years, while others remain out of style. Our fashions are not only brought back from the past, but some are brand new ideas fashion designers create. Fashion is an alternating compilation of styles that suffice diverse people and contradistinctive times. Fashion can be considered an expressive art, with the human physique as its canvas, and as a symbolization of one’s class, employment, imagination, and emotions.

Clothing is important because it’s a way to reflect our preferences, personality, culture, individuality, and uniqueness. People often use clothing to enhance their appearance and to impress other people but the reality is that clothing is a basic human need for the body and the mind, as it sometimes can influence our performance or boost our confidence. However, it is also important to know where and how our clothes are made, sold, and distributed to our favorite clothing stores. According to the article “Why America Stopped Making its Own Clothes”, in 1960, about 95 percent of the clothes sold were made in the United States. An average American person bought less than 25 garments each year, and an average American household spent around $497 in

The fashion industry is rapidly growing and constantly generating new fashion trends almost weekly. Fashion for some may seem ridiculous and unnecessary; but fashion is not just a meaningless usage of article of clothing or farcical materials sew together for coverage. There is more to fashion than meets the eyes, fashion is precious and significant. It is a reflection of self-image, it speak the ream about who we are and how we review ourselves. Not only is fashion the reflection of self-image but also the reflection of our history as Coco Channel have said, “Fashion is not something that exist in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” Fashion

Fast fashion is a term used for the mindset of consumers that fashion is something that we need to buy over and over again, very often, for very cheap. Fast fashion may seem like a good thing to the average consumer, but there are many consequences to it that people don’t know about. Ninety-five percent of fashion sold in America is made in factories overseas, where there are no labor laws in place. The garment workers in the factories are only paid an average of $2 a day. The owners of the factories cut corners on safety, leading to fires and other disasters, resulting in the loss of life. There are also no environmental laws, so the rivers and lakes that people depend on for clean water have become polluted by the chemicals used in leather factories, shoe making, and dyeing fabric. The negative effects of fast fashion vastly outweigh the positive effects of it.

The 1940s and 1950s allowed fashion designers to explore shapes, textures, and colors, and incorporating these elements of art into their garments. Not only this, the Modernist ideal simplified the mainstream definition of fashion, and threw away the restrictions of what the “typical woman” should look like. Although fashion changes daily, the turn of the twentieth century completely altered the way people worldwide saw the fashion industry. Fashion “functions as an intimate join between body and world, linking individuals” (Parkins 7), and embraces culture throughout the

Fashion has been a prominent aspect of a woman’s life throughout time. Women of different times and cultures have turned the routine of picking out clothes and putting together different ensembles into a sort of art, or a way to express and promote themselves. Many women also see fashion as part of their identity, or a way to manipulate the way people see them. What a woman wears can drastically change the way society views her - it can increase her chances of getting a job, or make her gain respect (or rejection) from her peers (Sika n.p.).

Effecting the environment has been a common issue that seems to keep resurfacing all over the world. While raw animal fur pelts may be biodegradable, the fur industry conveniently neglects to mention the fact that all of the animal skins used to make fur go through a tanning process (‘Nothing Humane about Fur Farms”). Tanning is a process that uses environmentally damaging toxins such as formaldehydes and strong acids. These chemicals are a danger to the atmosphere, helping destroy the environment which is already being damaged by other human-made things such as carbon dioxide from cars or grime from nuclear plants. The

This papers purpose is to teach fashion heavy consumers on the real price of fast fashion and how buying it affects the environment. This type of audience can be anyone who partakes in the buying of well-known cheap retail stores that have a large audience of being fast and obtainable. These consumers should have the information on how fast fashion effects are environment so it could possibly alter their buying habits to be eco-friendlier but buying either less or more sustainable clothing instead of the cheap alternatives. This audience should care about this purpose because this will affect the world now and for future generations as their environment is being mistreated because of these fast

There are a large amount of social and environmental problems within the global apparel industry.

Introduction The contribution of mechanised and automated manufacturing to various environmental impacts is enormous. Environmental impacts from manufacturing industries can be seen such areas as toxic chemicals, waste, energy, and carbon emissions. Manufacturing in developed countries is also a heavy user of water, and there have been many cases of air, water and soil contamination which have led to such actions as cleanups, class actions suits and a variety of other corporate liabilities. Environmental impact can be seen in all phases of textile production and use, from growing or making fibres to discarding a product after its useful life

Every woman has their period every month. Hence, the tampons are greatly needed. With this need is a health risk that can affect women in the future, such as dioxin residue, and chemicals in fragrances that are found within the tampon itself. In these chemicals lies a more dangerous risk, which is Toxic Shock Syndrome, pelvic inflammation to name a few. Thus, a woman’s need can also be the one that can put her in danger. Tampons, as small as it can seem, can also harm the environment. The production of cotton uses pesticides that can be carcinogenic and can leave traces in tampons. The plastic applicator found in tampons can harm marine ecosystem and can take years to degrade. The tampon, itself, that are found in landfills can’t also degrade and can cause carbon emissions.

Ethical fashion is the production of textile item with a moral sense. It can also be defined as an umbrella term to describe fashion ethics in designing, purchasing and buying of clothes. With the main concept of gaining social responsibility in terms of working condition, exploitation, fair trade, sustainable production, environment and animal welfare. Corporate all over the world are recognizing the importance and need of environment protection and ethical business. Fashion houses are no exception. More and more of fashion designer and other textile producers are striving to produce goods which do not cause harm to the environment and are not malice. Ethical issues in fashion are thus originating.

the rates of consumption continue to climb over the next few decades, the environment will hit a breaking point where it cannot sustain any more activity. Society can fix some of the issues generated by the clothing industry by treating clothes as a bare necessity, not a disposable product.