Facebook Publication Date: 7/17/2021 13:07
Ethical Consumerism gets discussed everywhere. Platforms are filled with what to buy, what not to buy, and how to go about consuming while avoiding negative associations. But are these sustainable, durable, and actual changes to the system? What does it mean for our own daily living? Below is a discussion I, Lace Watkins, had recently on a friend’s page, concerning a particular company that has been accused of stealing styles and designs from creators, particularly Black designers. Read through the discussion, as well as an older post I wrote about boycotts, and then let’s have a discussion on ethical consumerism!
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Lace: Hey y’all.
For those who might not know me, I run a website that focuses on applied relational ethics, particularly regarding race. I am not saying this as a flex, but rather to give context.
For further context, I come from firmly working class stock; until quite recently actually, my finances have always been, if not precarious, then definitely….modest.
So I do get it when the conversation turns to ethics and consumerism; I have written articles on this subject, because I do believe it’s crucial for those who care both about the meta issue of ethical buying, and, and so importantly, about the people who make choices in the marketplace.
First off, let me show my cards. I used be part of a group who ran a fair trade store; I care deeply about who makes what, who gets exploited, who the end user is, up and down the supply chain.
I am also firmly grounded in the real world. After I write this I am going to go to two *very* problematic stores; to one to get paint supplies, to the other to get exercise gear. Neither are in complete alignment with my stated values. I feel that deeply.
But, or rather And. There is no doubt that my financial situation does inform where and how I shop. And when I consider my shopping habits, my hands are by no means clean.
It’s true–as a fat woman, it’s somewhat challenging to find clothes at price points that work for me, and as well, as an older woman, it’s hard to find clothes that don’t either look like my 19 year old niece might wear them, or my 81 year old mother might. And as a Black woman, finding fit that works with my very Afrocentric body is yet another challenge; just bc they make it in a size 18 doesn’t mean it will work.
All this to say I get it. And I do bristle when people try to tell me how to live on certain areas of my life, when ostensibly ethical choices are easier for other people to make than they are for me.
This tension–feeling judged for my choices was a lot more pronounced, and I felt it a LOT harder, before I was able to have the freedom *and the privilege*, to do two things: to have a bit more financial freedom, so more choices opened up for me, as well as being able to be more mindful, and , crucially, being able to buy less of (slightly) higher price points. And, in the case of my dressing, to, at the age of almost 60, to have a fairly decent wardrobe of basics and staples (same with shoes and cosmetics–I have bad feet, so my Payless (do they even still exist?) days are over, and I am not going to mess with dollar tree makeup).
But two things are still true: I am brutally aware of the choices that I outlined above when I make my spending decisions, and also, I remember when those choices weren’t available.
So I am never going to cast shade on *anyone* who makes different choices that I might. I understand context, and backstory, and know, in a marrow deep way, what it means to make a way out of no way.
But, (and this is where I might lose some of y’all), even given the realities outlined above (actually, especially given the realities outlined above), I do feel that I as a black woman who straddles several marginalizations (black, working class, fat, old) I can, and indeed *must* be mindful of my choices, despite, or perhaps even because, of my identities.
Stay with me.
I realize, and start from this truth: it is hard, almost to the point of impossible, to completely and consistently live out applied ethics when it comes to apparel. Period.
One of my aspirational brands, one I would love to have in my wardrobe almost exclusively, is Eileen Fisher. Sustainable, strong moral and ethical stance, and the clothes are beautiful and well made, *and* she is committed to fair trade and treating her workers well. Checks off all the boxes.
A shirt is 400. I am doing better than I was 20, or even 10 years ago, but 400 worth of fabric is never going to grace my body. Ever.
So I have to compromise.
But we do it in all areas, right?
Who knows the ethics of the company we buy toothpaste or toilet paper from? Or paper clips? or windshield wipers?
We are very selective about the brands and industries whose feet we hold to the fire.
And it’s people with privilege who set the standards and construct moving targets that often aggrandize themselves. Jennifer Wood, lovingly, this is where I take issue with your exhortation: why is this particular data point–this sweater– more important than any other when we consider ethical consumerism?
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins as you said, it’s nearly impossible to consume ethically all the time. But I know that this company has a long history of stealing designs from (overwhelmingly) Black artists. It was and is one important point of which I think relatively few consumers are aware.
Lace: I was going to speak on this issue further down, but let’s look at it now.
Yes, Shein is terrible. They steal from African and African Americans.
*Who doesn’t?*
Every major fashion house does; taking street wear that folks cobbled together with thrifted pieces and creativity, and then slapping a $500 dollar price point on ripped jeans. Anything I see any retailer touting ‘global’ trends, whether it be Shein or Banana Republic or Chico’s or Anthropologie, I cringe.
The entire history of modern fashion (let’s start the clock at the 60’s, when appropriation of Black and brown culture was RIFE; those flower children (and, going back even further think about zoot suits) and disco style in the 70’s, and street wear in the 90’s going forward–all of it is stolen. Unless you are strictly preppy–you live at Talbots and Land’s End, you’re a part of it, and even then, Talbot’s will sell you an ‘ethnic’ scarf to go with your sheath dress.
Why not go after them?
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins music is the same, as you know. You can’t go after them all, but you can call out specific transgressions.
Lace: Again, it’s the selectivity. And in the waters we both swim in, academia, social work, therapy, there is enough ‘global’ wear and silver jewelry and hemp to clothe an army. But we don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about our own choices or the choices of our peers.
Here is one place where I parse: as an ADOTE (American descendant of the enslaved), I *have* no reference point for what is authentic for me, because my origin culture (which i will never know) is lost, and a culture that is hostile to me has been forced upon me, so is the flat front pant and oxford shirt i will wear today appropriation? I don’t think so. But is the almost costume like garb i see up and down our peer group appropriation? That’s a conversation.
See my statement above. Just who is the ‘who’? More accurately an specifically, who is the ‘you’ and or the ‘we’ who should be calling out transgressions? This is important.
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins every white person enjoys things stolen from Black people. Including me.
Anonymous #2: It is not classist to ask everyone to at least do our own research into companies before we purchase. I personally buy second hand before I buy retail bc I want to do my part by reducing my carbon footprint. If it’s that cheap to obtain in a retail store or online retail store, nine times out of ten, the co is involved in abusive responses to the workers, land and environment.
Lace: So, let’s talk about Shein, although, I will say plainly that while I am happy to use them as an example, and from what I hear and read they deserve to be called out (i am so not their demographic, so i have no first hand knowledge of them) but then so did forever 21; so does other fast fashion.
Let’s stipulate that Shein is…..complex ethically. So is Walmart. So is Home Depot. I will be going to both of them later today. Both make for compromise on my part, if you’re being generous, and collusion if you don’t feel like giving me a pass.
How can i live out my values, given the compromise?
This is where the conversation turns for me, and where I both agree with and diverge with both Jennifer Wood and Moon Koi.
Am I willing to both purchase paint supplies from Home Depot and tank tops from Walmart, *and also do the work to publicly state my concerns*, as well as to state my concerns with them via an email? Am i willing to take those steps? I have, with them and with other companies, and will continue to do so.
And am I willing to find/source perhaps better choices that bring me further into alignment with the woman I say I want to be? That’s trickier. But the answer is a qualified yes, and I am working on that more and more with my choices–*with the acknowledgement that my privileged financial choices make it more possible to be more mindful*.
Here’s where I might lose Moon: my choices, however justified and contextualized, *do not absolve me from responsibility*. I *can* choose to buy 1 shirt instead of 5 this year, so i can make a more ethical choice. I *can* utilize the ‘contact me’ button on the website to voice my concerns. I *can* choose to thrift shop. I *can* choose to buy nothing at all–which has its own ethical concerns. If I buy nothing, am i hurting a Shein employee or contractor, and their employees, by witholding my money? Again, no truly ethical choics. Just mindful and brutally honest ones.
Here is where I might lose anonymous: just like someone in a Prius giving my Santa Fe side eye, but commuting 40 miles one way from their leafy (and brutally de facto segregated) neighborhood every day, but not factoring in that, because I drive much less frequently than they do, it’s a wash, people who make commentary about other’s choices without concomitant interrogation of their own choices is….funky.
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins I examine my choices constantly, in all honesty. I would not ask of others what I am unwilling to ask of myself.
Anonymous #2: it’s not automatically classist, perhaps.
Lace: But for me, it matters deeply out of whose mouths the critique springs.
If a person who is working class takes me to task for my Walmart tank top, and suggests that I could make better choices, *I will listen* and do my best to mitigate the harm–and make no mistake, there is harm. Walmart is worse, if only by scale, Walmart is worse than Shein.
But if someone in a 80k Tesla does the same, while sitting in their 4000 sq foot house in a gated neighborhood where my black tuchas would be unwelcome and police might well be called, that is another thing entirely.
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins it is. My perspective is this, in a nutshell: when you are in a position to buy ethically (as much as possible), you should. But I think the onus is *always* on us to understand as best we can the ethics of the companies we support, regardless of our finances. In my opinion, this blatant theft is something all potential consumers should be aware of.
Anonymous #3: i think it is fair to say that this place should be called out, i think ur post before was fair, but i am not sure it’s fair of you to expect the same from others than u expect from yourself without first recognizing not everyone will be in the same situation as you. This is a nuanced topic. we have to look at it intersectionally,
I have more problems to do with how you responded to criticizm than how it was presented cause these are issues that affect everyone differently, and to minimize/invalidate Moon’s criticizm like you did was more unnacceptable. and you did do that at first.
Lace: Ach. But I want to be sure that the point is made and not lost, and I want to be sure that both you, Jennifer Wood, as well as others absolutely know that I am not caping for you, as the kids say.
Where there are whiffs of classism is that you *did* fail to take into consideration that your position in the world, your social and economic capital, makes it easy for you to take positions that seem ‘woke’ or courageous, while at the same time, casting aspersions on those whose choices are more limited *by the very systems that give you primacy*. It *is* easier for you.
also, that if this is *all* you are doing–posting on facebook–and not using that enhanced and (and largely unearned) social capital to engage *with the source of the economic violence*–that is, Shein–it feels more than a bit performative. As well, we now know the originator of the sweater.
Did you buy one from her? That is definitely a way you can both mitigate harm as well as acknowledge and affirm–and direct resources to more marginalized. If the sweater is not your style, you could have just supported her work other ways.
What i am saying is not that you are *wrong*, but that the action was incomplete.
If you cared enough to note the issue, why not take steps to make it right? This is where most white people drop the ball.
You know my mission and North Star: lessening and mitigating the harm endured by Black and Brown people, perpetuated by white people and white supremacy. You shone a bright light on the supremacy. But what *did* you do to lessen it? How has the *designer’s life been changed*? Are you willing to make a commitment to only buy from black owned brands going forward?
This puts skin in the game, and gives you sturdier legs to stand on in your exhortation.
Anonymous: Lace Janine Watkins I’m not going to launch into a performative recitation of my actions. I WILL assure you I’m far too fat for this designer’s work.
Lace: Anonymous #3 I quitely agree. If the conflict was public, or in this case, semi public, the moves toward repair–not just with those who are the ‘major players’,, but also with those of us in the ‘cheep seats’ listening in, also must be done similarly. In my work, and in my personal life, I discourage DM and side chats with something like this. It can sidestep accountability, and also ‘showing your work’ can be beneficial–and it is crucial for anyone on the power end of any given slash, like here. We haven’t talked about it, and I am not going to bore y’all with yet another lecture, but this conversation turned on power. It’s all of a piece.
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On Boycotts
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