Okay people, so I’ve got a pretty hot topic that’s bound to stir a few ears.  As you may know we’re all about ethical clothing here on this blog.  The exact characteristics that constitute what’s ethical and what’s not ethical is, of course, very subjective.

When it comes to the discussion of clothing and ethics, a lot of people usually talk about the manufacturing of the clothes.  They typically talk about what the clothes are made of, who made them, where it was made, so on and so forth.  If people aren’t arguing about how and where clothes were made, then they’re fighting over how much or little of their body their clothes reveal.

We don’t often hear about the words that are displayed on clothing.  Swearing, in general, is certainly a hot topic that’s subject to much debate.  Whether or not one considers it right or wrong to swear, one has to wonder whether it’s okay to publicly wear clothing that displays swear words.

Is it wrong to have a swear word on your shirt?  Does it depend on the swear word?  If a shirt says “Damn,” does it make any less disrespectful than a shirt that says “Fuck?”  Also, does the context of the swear word matter?  For example, if I wear a shirt that says “CrazyBulk is Fucking Awesome!” would that be more ethically sound than wearing a shirt that says “Fuck the World!”?

I would assume that people who despise swearing in general would not find any swear words on clothing acceptable.  I would say that it’s also safe to assume that people who love to swear and swear like sailors in their daily life would be perfectly fine with people wearing T-shirts saturated with F-Bombs.  Then, I believe there’s a large middle ground of people who may feel the same way I do and struggle with having a solid opinion on this subject.

Maybe you swear in your personal life and don’t swear in public, so you’re not sure what to feel about other people displaying cuss words on their shirt?  Or perhaps you swear all the time around your friends, but don’t dare to swear in front of kids?  Or perhaps you enjoy swearing, but just think it’s not classy to wear clothes that contain foul language?

No matter what your opinion, I think we can all agree that there is no clean-cut, black-and-white answer to this hot topic.  What do you think about wearing clothes that contain swear words?

I wanted to share a quick experience I had about 2 years ago.  My buddy and I were selling “energy shots” at a stand on a very popular street downtown.  It was really a great way for us to make some extra cash on the side.  We basically mixed energy drink syrup with water in small sampling cups and sold them at $2 a piece.   Because of the Vitamin B content in the energy syrup, we marketed them as “Anti-Hangover Shots,” although, given the ingredients in the mix, we could have also marketed them as “Lose Weight Fast” shots, haha!!  Maybe we could have sold more that way.   Really, really great memories!

But anyways, my friend and I were selling them on the street one day and had the LOVELY (and I say that sarcastically) experience of being interrupted by a protester.  As we were having fun, marketing our services, and making some good money, a tall, slender man with shaggy curly hair, stationed himself a good 10 meters from us, and started yelling passionately into a megaphone.  Yup, that’s right, a megaphone.  YELLING into the megaphone on the street.

He was protesting the clothing store that we were standing next to.  He went on and on and on about how the clothing store (who’s identity I will not reveal) was unethical.  He specifically talked about how the leaders of the brand were homophobic and supported homophobic causes.

Because I was really only half listening, and to be perfectly honest, really irritated at the time, I didn’t fully grasp the content he was conveying.  At the time, I was really just trying to have fun that Saturday afternoon, meet some cool people, and make a lot of money.  I saw the protester as nothing more than a little pest who was ruining my Saturday afternoon.

Years later, as I reflect back on the experience, I realized that there was probably more that I could have internalized from the protester’s words.  Although I have not researched the credibility of the facts that he was spewing out, it certainly couldn’t have hurt to learn more about the issue he was disclosing.  I could have even taken the time to introduce myself, ask about his cause, and then kindly asked him to move a bit further away from where I was set up.

What I learned most from that experience is that there are times when I am completely lazy when it comes researching the places and people I buy clothes from.  This doesn’t just apply to clothes, but any product in any industry.  We sometimes, and I’m certainly always very guilty of this, assume that the business we purchase from is indeed an ethical business that aligns with our own personal beliefs.  I certainly wouldn’t purchase products or services from a company that was run by an evil individual who performed evil, unethical actions.

I just thought it’d be nice to share this experience because it helps me become a bit more self-aware of my actions, and allows me to be more mindful of retail store protesters in the future!  Hope this post helps and makes you think a little! 🙂

Power of Protesting:

What springs to mind when you hear the term ethical fashion? Is it long skirts made out of hemp, worn by people with long hair, no make up and no deodorant or do you think batik and tie die prints?

Do you think of it as knowing where the clothes you are wearing comes from, what type of factory has manufactured the garment, how the factory workers have been treated and how was the fabric itself made?

Ethical fashion clothing is the idea of following fashion trends in a way that encompasses a sense of morality in the production of the garment.

From the purchasing of the fabric, to the manufacturing of garments, each stage of the process should be conducted in a way that benefits everyone.

People

Cotton grow on fields and need to be picked.

Now you would think that as most cotton is now picked by machines, there is no longer any advantage taken of the people who pick cotton.

This may not necessarily be true as those who drive the mechanical pickers and all others involved are not immune to being taken advantage of.

Like any other workforce, they can be intimidated, bullied and threatened with loss of their job or hours cut drastically when money needs to be saved or even fired if they do not reach their quotas.

Thus, the concept of ethical fashion is about ensuring that those involved in the production of the clothes you are wearing are treated with dignity, paid a decent wage and have adequate work conditions.

Other than people, the other area to think about when talking about ethical fashion is the environment.

Environment

We’ve heard it time and time again, we only have this planet to live on and we have to look after it.

In the quest to have the latest trends quickly we should not fall into the trap of using chemicals that could harm the environment.

The use of harmful chemicals and pesticides may increase profits in the short run, by ensuring what is harvested meets the set standard, but in the long run by damaging the soil, others may not be able to grow crops and with no food to eat/sell, trade suffers.

The increase of organic clothing

When you look round shops there is an increase in the number clothing label as being made from organic fabrics. This labeling gives customers comfort in purchasing goods knowing care has been taken in its production.

As organic fabrics are free of pesticides, herbicides and generically modified seeds, its production is more expensive as crops are at greater risk of being damaged. This is where fabrics like bamboo are being used more as they grow fast, doesn’t need fertilisers or pesticides, has natural UV protection and has a natural resistance to bacteria.

Soy is a new fabric being used and is a by product of soybean production, a legume that raises controversy when asking if its healthy for you or not. It contains about 20g of fat per 100g and has polyunsaturated, saturated and monounsaturated fat. With this much fat, you may want to read a few phen 375 reviews like the one at fatburnerpillsreviews.com

As retailers are in business to make money, they are able to charge a premium on clothing made from organic fabrics and are constantly looking, if they can get the fabric at cheaper cost, while still being ethical, this is a win/win for all.

Ethical clothing has an important role in making the fashion world socially responsible, after all the fashion industry has a reputation of being exploitative.

Many brands have now jumped on the ethical trend bandwagon. Some are doing it to increase profits, some because they do not want to be left out and others because they genuinely believe it’s the right thing to do.

Being cynical, those who genuinely believe it’s the right thing to do would more than likely end up either going out of business or being bought by another company.

For the fashion industry a place to start in having ethical fashion would be to protect wages, have good working conditions and rights, not use harmful chemical and toxic pesticide, reduce water usage, promote or develop sustainable methods for fashion production, recycle and check energy efficiency of factories before deciding on which factory to go with and be mindful of animal rights.

To be truly, ethical companies need to constantly ask themselves if they can hold their heads up high when questioned on the making of their garments.

Workforce

There are a few areas to look at here, wages paid, working conditions and not using under aged employees.

Wages

Its essential workers are paid a fair wage for the tasks they complete. Ideally, it would also be a wage that meets matches the cost of living.

Working conditions

The environment in which people work in is very important. It doesn’t have to be trendy with the latest office gadgets, but it does have to be safe, have amenities such as bathrooms, a place to eat during breaks, ideally it would be a place things like a hydrolyzed weigh protein can be prepared, read more about this at www.topwheyproteinisolate.com along with other quick snacks. Its also essential there is a first aid box, just in case there is a minor injury or accident.

The work environment also has to have the right type of tools to allow workers to perform their jobs well.

Workers rights

Having a process workers can follow clearly laid out if they have any grievances should be available to all. Plus having a work environment were grievances can be aired without the fear of being reprimanded, such as losing your job, is something ethical companies must have.

Underage employees

Under no circumstances should a company employ under aged workers. Do you want your latest bag made by a 7 year old working 10 hours a day in a factory?

Supply chain

Consolidating shipments with other retailers, using trucks that use alternative fuel and not using air as a means of transporting garments are ways a fashion retailers carbon footprint can be reduced.

There are more factors that make companies ethical and the above outlines the broader criteria.

People are behind any organisation and treating them well will benefit all concerned. On the environmental side, reducing the effect of business functions such as effects of supply chain is a step towards the goal of being ethical.

Sources:
The Guardian