Sustainable Fashion is a Privilege

This may come as a surprise but, I truly and wholeheartedly believe that sustainable fashion is unattainable to most. I believe in sustainable fashion, I welcome it, but the fact remains not everyone has these resources.

Recently I have seen a lot of talk about ethical vs. fast fashion. I love seeing what everyone has to say, and seeing why people think what they think. However, when it comes to anything that we are consuming it circles back to capitalism.

We live in a society where rich people are always praised and always given everything and anything they want. In this case, they are given the ability to shop ethically and shop sustainably when others are not.

This doesn’t mean we don’t want to, it means there is a lack of resources to do so. This means we turn to cheaper avenues to conduct our business and this does not always mean we head straight to Goodwill. Second-hand shopping and thrift shopping should be the go-to, however, in some areas even this is taken away. What I mean is that in some places affluent people are going and shopping here on purpose, and thus taking away the ability for us to find cute affordable clothing that we can buy second hand.

Don’t get me wrong, thrift shopping is a dog eat dog world in and of itself so keep on keeping on! Go out there, find that amazing deal, but don’t go and post a $10 Nike pullover you got from Goodwill on DePop for $35. Because this is where the capitalist side of things comes into play. In a capitalist consumer-driven society we are told to constantly keep buying things, even if we don’t really need it. We are told you need to have the best clothes, the latest technology, the best cars, and more. But, for those without the means this is already unattainable, so why are people now telling us how we shop is wrong?

So, please, don’t look down your nose at those that can’t go to the overpriced USA made and ethically sourced shops. We care about the environment too, but we also have to think about what food we are going to be eating today, can I afford rent this month, and how will we make ends meet.