Central Theme Question: We buy 80 million pieces of clothing each year. How does buying things, or buying into an image impact the world and ourselves? How does buying clothes we don’t need, impact the environment?
Handouts: A Class/BClass
LESSON 1-2
Learning Question: Why Are We Studying the Fashion Industry? What is ‘Fast Fashion’?
Fast Fashion Social Effects It’s cheaper to buy clothes made from low-cost economies. Developing governments are at the corporations’ mercy because they are under the constant threat of relocation. Wanting to keep the corporation from locating to another poor country, governments will avoid enforcing local labor or environmental laws. Companies profit without any responsibility. but there are problems in their Supply Chain (sweatshops).
LESSON 3-4: Exploitation of Workers
Learning Question: What are some negative consequences of the production of clothes?
Critics of the fashion industry say garment factories are not safe and the workers’ human rights are not guaranteed, and the presence of these corporation keeps people in poverty. Likewise, the majority of garment workers are women who are separated from their children because of long hours and lack of childcare.
There are 40 million garment factory workers, 4 million are in Bangladesh which has 5,000 factories, 85% of these factory garment workers are female. They are paid less than 1-2$ a day, and are beaten if they try to unionize for better working conditions. In the interest of Big Business, owners/managers will “cut corners” in safety conditions which has had some horrible effects.
Case Studies:
Compare the worker's movement and the minimum wage of both countries. What can we conclude?
- Rana Plaza Disaster: 931 people dead, and management was aware of the workers’ safety concerns
- 2014 Labor Unrest and Police Violence in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
B. Consumerism and Unhappiness
LESSON 5a. Consumerism and Unhappiness
Lesson Question: What are some negative social consequences for consumers?
LESSON 5b-6 Being Fashionable Can be Unhealthy High heels cause arthritis and damaged knees (A/B)
Group Activity: Media Literacy and Decoding Advertisments' Unhealthy Body Image
REVIEW/ TEST
II. Impact on Environment
Landfills; Clothes are disposable, or we ship the unwanted clothes to the developing world, destroying their local clothes industry (ie Haiti).
A.Cotton
The land is the factory and cotton is modified (GMO). The company Monsanto has a monopoly on seeds. Their redesigned seed is patented so their plant can take on more of the chemicals, like nitrogen fertilizers, which Monsanto also sells. The poor farmers fall into debt and often commit suicide by drinking their poison. (In India 1 farmer kills themselves every 30 minutes).
These “ecological narcotics” (pesticides, fertilizers) contaminate the soil and drinking water. The side effects for the farmers and their families include birth defects and cancer.
B. Leather
Kripor, India Tannery pollution produces 50 million liters of toxic wastewater daily
Chromium and other “effluents” produce liver cancer and other liver problems.
C. Dyes
Vibrant colors, prints, and fabric finishes are appealing features of fashion, but many of these are achieved with toxic chemicals. Textile dying is the second largest polluter of clean water globally, after agriculture.
D. Polyester
Polyester is the most popular fabric used for fashion. But when polyester garments are washed in washing machines, they shed microfibres that add to the increasing levels of plastic in our oceans. These microfibres are so tiny they easily pass through sewage and wastewater treatment plants into our waterways, but because they are not biodegradable, they are a serious threat to aquatic life. Small creatures like plankton eat the microfibres, which then make their way up the food chain to fish and shellfish eaten by humans.
III. Solutions
The current system of capitalism requires people to be big consumers, to be materialistic. Economist Richard Wolf says that we need to rethink capitalism and improve our economic system. There is nothing democratic or equal about capitalism, which is based on a classist system. The American tradition of Black Friday embodies all that is materialistic and selfish in this kind of mentality.
Part 2: Discussion
Where do you usually buy your clothing? Have you ever purchased clothing from a used clothing store? Why or why not? Is used clothing in fashion in your hometown?
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Resources:
Videos: True Cost
