the fast fashion debate is stupid

the fast fashion debate is one that is both classist and impractical. it stems from a place of ignorance. while i understand the sentiment, there's a lot of irony in the underlying problems people have with it.

i remember watching broey deschanels video on it, saying how it's "not an excuse" to say that not everybody can afford to dress sustainably. she then goes on to say we don't need to "promote overconsumption", which i will agree in certain circumstances. in example, an already rich enough influencer doing a $500 shein haul of items that'll only be in their closet for a month. absolutely understandable to be mad about. however, a lot of thrift resellers also overconsume. there's tons of thrifting influencers that go to the thrift on the daily, yet it's not seen as overconsumption simply because it's the thrift store. 

and i know it sounds a bit far fetched to cry "classism" at any given critiques of those consuming unethically - but we all do. we all consume unethically, we all purchase things at the expense of someones unfair labor or mistreatment. even a minimum wage employee suffered just for you to buy your groceries. nothing we practice in consumption is morally sound or ethical. 

there's also something to be said about well off people shaming others with less money than them, for shopping where they find cheapest. yes, sites like depop do have cheap prices, however not everything is necessarily in their size. sometimes i can't find my size even at the h&m clearance rack, so of course i'll want to look for clothes in my style on aliexpress. thankfully i have seen plenty of clothes my size on depop, however it's very hit or miss. a shirt marked size "L" will still be way too small on me, but the same can also be said for a site like aliexpress. if i'm in a fast fashion store and have the opportunity to buy something i genuinely like, and will wear for awhile, in my size, why not seize that?

it's impossible to pretend like everything you find in a thrift store was made ethically, or not fast fashion. yes, it's already been made, but someone already suffered for you to own that garment. might as well accept that, along with all current fashion. 

the sweat shop argument to me, is quite hypocritical. your iphone was made with slave labor, amazon, most if not ALL high fashion brands are highly unethical or use slave labor, lululemon, nike, etc. are all brands that are known for harmful practices. and yet, these same people shaming you for shein, tend to purposely look for nike and designer brands to reselle, and they even buy it for themselves occasionally. these same people always own iphones too. and while i do understand that we live in a day and age where we rely on phones, it's still an ironic argument to be made. 

the reason i consider this classist, is because of the reasons stated above. you are not better than somebody for thrifting when you still own higher end items that were also made unethically. you cannot put yourself on some moral high ground and do that. it's hypocrisy through and through. these people, when mentioning sustainability, always forget to mention higher end brands. i wonder why that is. 

it's also a very valid point that, not everybody has thrift stores nearby. those that do, in small towns, tend to not have very good items, or the prices don't match their income. thrift stores are still meant for lower income people, and greed has made it hard for them to now access clothes they need and can afford. wurld said it best in her latest video, that by reselling from the thrift and "saving" the good items from landfills, you're not helping anyone less fortunate. you're camping out at the bins every hour, alternating between the racks each hour, etc. to take all the good stuff you find, then shame the poor people who criticize you for it because you left them with a stained tank top 3 sizes too big, all so you can profit despite already being well off enough to not need to.

"thrift reselling got me out of poverty" sure, that's great, but now you're trying to justify spending $1000 at the thrift store daily to profit off of those that already can't afford it? do better.

expecting people to limit their options for the sake of being fake woke is just ignorant. people less fortunate cannot get what they need because of this, and are left to turn to fast fashion or sites like shein. and yes, resellers are at fault for this. i shouldn't have to result to shein because the thrift reseller took the only 5 good xl shirts around for the sake of a profit they don't need. that's greedy.

and a lot of these people make the argument that trends don't matter, yet are giving into trends themselves. purposely thrifting trends yet shame those who buy trends via h&m or shein. these same people insist you should just buy ugly clothes anyways, even if out of style or the garment will shrink after one wash. oh, the irony of telling poorer people to not expect to have nice things and then judge them for not dressing well. who would've saw it coming.

i know i mixed thrift resellers into this topic, but i think they also have a lot of blame to be thrown their way in all of this. to me, the fast fashion debate and resellers go hand in hand. except, one is defended because at least they "saved" items to help make a profit. and just because stores and businesses do it, doesn't make it ok. the difference is buying wholesale, and buying items that are meant to be sold that the average consumer can't get access to anyways because of that. resellers take items that are already affordable, or cheap, or at stores for people with a lower income or can only afford a discounted price - and jack up the prices 5x the amount they paid, for the sake of a "profit" they don't need.

moral of the story, this whole debate is stupid. buy what you can afford, no consumption is ethical. and rich people, if you want people to consume ethically, give us the money and resources to do so properly, otherwise shut up.