Check the Price Tag: What Fast Fashion is Really Costing You

By: Connie Ryu

Click.

Added to your bag.

Then, you pay        and wait for it.

It’s exciting when you          receive your package.

You hurriedly open the box and try on the clothes.

Next thing you know, it ends up buried in a pile in the corner.

You’ve entered a vicious cycle and can’t stop buying, 

Because now, neon colors are in and you have to have it.

Intentional or not, your overconsumption is feeding fast fashion. 

While you’re funding the boss’ party life, clothes are being made 

By sweatshop workers in countries like China and Bangladesh,

Pushing through 14 to 16 hour shifts below minimum wage

In working conditions that risk lung cancer and other diseases.

Besides supporting the companies who exploit such workers,

You’re also hurting the environment with every useless purchase.

Those clothes you just threw into the bottom of your closet?

You might end up wearing it once or twice, but in reality,

It won’t last either because it’s made of such cheap material

Or because Instagram has already moved on to snakeskin now.

What’s my point? 60% of fast fashion items end up in a landfill.

Only behind the oil industry as a pollutant, fast fashion produces

92 million tons of waste and consumes trillions of liters of water

Every year. The next step isn’t to necessarily stop buying altogether

Or to start spending hundreds on a pair of sustainable jeans.

Obviously not everyone can afford that, which is where 

Fast fashion comes in, making certain clothing more accessible

To those who don’t have the financial flexibility to shop otherwise,

But we can all start somewhere. Just giving another second of thought 

Before clicking the “Add to Bag” button can make a difference,

Especially when there are so many other ways to be sustainably stylish.

You can dig through local thrift stores (following safety precautions) 

Or stay home and learn how to alter or repair the clothes you already own!

The important thing is to not forget; everything comes with a price tag.