COMPASSION FOR FASHION
And it all starts with nature. Everything human beings have needed to survive, and thrive, was provided by the natural world around us: food, water, or air that we breathe. But as the civilizations evolved with time, everything got commercialized one at a time. In terms of food, the cuisine industry emerged, in terms of medicine — the pharmacy industry or be it in terms of clothing — the fashion industry. When this exploitative nature of human beings will end, no one knows but looking at the current scenario of the earth and climatic changes around us, it’s pretty evident!
The fashion industry has a disastrous impact on the environment. It is the second-largest polluter in the world, just after the oil industry. And the environmental damage caused by the same is increasing as the industry grows. Also, it is one of the most exploitative industries — animals are tortured for their skins, the underpaid garment workers working in a hazardous environment, to name a few.
The most ancient humans created the garments they wore from materials that were around them, animal furs being one of the materials. Fur clothing is not only soft, warm, durable, and also protects the body effectively in winter, but has often been a sign of wealth and rank in society in the later centuries. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it became fashionable for both men and women to wear fur and fur-trimmed coats, hats, dresses, and other accessories. Even the top hat or milliners, one of the most commonly worn items of the 1800s, could be made from beaver fur. In 1929, the first line of a Vogue features entitled “The Fur Story of 1929” went like this: “Go without jewels, pocket money, or every-day clothes, Vogue advises, but never try to scrimp on fur. For the fur you wear will reveal to everyone the kind of woman you are and the kind of life you lead.” It gives a very clear idea of what kind of status symbol owing and wearing fur used to be. This popularity continued until the 1960s when some people began to protest the deaths of animals for clothing.
Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, who was one of the leading trendsetters and pomp extraordinaire, popularized her signature pouf hairstyle triggering a wave of women to adopt the same. It was considered fashionable, decorated with pearls, hair jewelry, and feathers for some serious accessorizing. The use of feathers was not new, for example — plumed hats or milliners had been worn by the fashionable wealthy back in the 18th century, became a symbol of exotic beauty. However, what developed in the late 19th century, in cities such as Paris (the manufacturing hub), London (the biggest market), and New York (the emerging hotspot), was an explosive growth in this fashion, crossing class, and geographical boundaries, on a scale which today seems almost inconceivable.
Today, they’re featured in glossy fashion magazines by designers like Giorgio Armani, Tommy Hilfiger, Gap, The North Face, to name a few. They’re flying off racks and shelves in stores like Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Burlington Coats, and Benetton. The down jacket is currently experiencing great popularity, but before you rush out and buy one, ask yourself this: how cruel this coat is? Millions of birds, particularly geese, suffer horrifically to provide the grisly filling for this fashion statement. Billions of animals are slaughtered and processed each year, for the “Fashion Industry”. Whether we’re speaking of leather, fur, wool, feathers/down, or silk, animals are “ranched”/raised, trapped, mutilated, and killed under some of the most horrific conditions imaginable, to produce the clothing and accessories that most of us wear. These animals lead miserable, short, tortured lives about which the average consumer has little awareness or knowledge, but thanks to the internet and the persistence of animal rights advocates, that’s beginning to change.
Once the resolutely conventional winter-fashion choice, fur has gone hip-hop and Generation Z. It turns up now in all seasons, infancy music videos and purses, high heels, key chains, sweatshirts, scarves, furniture, and lampshades. There are camouflage-pattern fur coats, tie-dyed fur coats & Feather coats, feather heels, and feather whatnot. Kylie. Kendall. Tracee. Lizzo. Kacey. Zendaya. Rita. Erika. Those are just a few of the celebrities that have embraced feathered fashion this year. And there have been countless influencers photographed in feather-trimmed Miu Miu during Fashion Week; models flouncing about in fully feathered minidresses by up-and-coming labels like 16Arlington and Attico, and the friends-of-friends on Instagram posting about their feathered Staud bags, H&M slides, and other more mass-market takes on the trend. It’s inescapable. But, is the use of feathers any more ethical? According to Yvonne Taylor, director of corporate projects at Peta, the answer is No!
So how should we feel about the resurgence of features & furs? Should the upcoming generation of women be inspired? Or should they be outraged, as animal rights activists insist? Should we applaud the advances the fur industry has made in animal welfare? Or do such measures merely “make us feel better about exploiting animals”.
Faux Fur isn’t the only material alternative that can help revolutionize the fashion industry as it currently exists. Spandex or elastane, are commonly used in apparel, but due to short-lived and poor performance, end up in a landfill. Today it seems as though this topic is more prevalent than ever before, with luxury houses like Gucci, Burberry, and Victoria Beckham all pledging to ban fur from their collections.
Eco-conscious fashion designer Stella McCartney recently unveiled the first eco-friendly faux fur made using plant-based ingredients (DuPont Sorona plant-based fibers), named as — KOBA FUR-FREE FUR debuted as an onyx black faux fur coat at the McCartney SS20 fashion show during Paris. It is developed by Ecopel which is a global apparel manufacturer. The Koba Fur-Free Fur can be recycled at the end of its life, which helps ensure that it does not end in a landfill.
In conclusion, feathers or furs may look beautiful on the catwalk; but they look more beautiful on a bird. And that beautiful bird makes nature look magnificent. Regardless of trends, we need to change the way we shop. Fashion is a way of self-expression but that expression shouldn’t cost the innocent life of animals. In fast and forward-moving life, fashion should be AS SLOW AS POSSIBLE (ASAP) and in the short term, it is known as SUSTAINABILITY.