Week 4
ASA 141
The general topic of the Santa's Sweatshop piece was regarding how many clothing items are manufactured via sweatshops with unethical and oftentimes unsafe working conditions. Much of the content of the article I expected, as it talked about many popular brands and how consumers should know that supporting such brands is wrong. However, I feel that in today's day and age, most consumers are well aware that a large part of the clothing industry runs on the backs of exploited workers in underdeveloped countries. Additionally, more often than not, these consumers would rather turn a blind eye to the fact that their clothing comes from the exploitation of workers than to figure out ways to change their purchasing habits.
People of today's society really live lives according to convenience, no matter what their moral standards may be. They would also rather purchase items that fit more into their "vibe" or "aesthetic", and usually clothing brands that are more ethical do not follow the trends, which makes sense since fast fashion companies rarely operate in an ethical way. Additionally, fast fashion items tend to be cheaper than items produced in places with better working standards. This is why we continue to see retailers such as Fashion Nova and Forever 21 thriving. I feel that there can be a way to make ethical clothing both more accessible (cheaper) and desirable (trendy), but it is not being done yet. Since I know very little about the industry or about business in general, I can't think of any solutions to this problem myself. I hope, though, that one day someone is able to accomplish this.
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