This March, as we celebrate Women’s History Month and all the amazing contributions women have made to the world, we cannot forget the women who make our clothes. Unethical treatment of workers is an inherently feminist issue: 80% of garment workers are women (Fairtrade.net). Women working in the garment industry often endure terrible conditions while working 12-hour days, with only a few days off a month, and not being paid a living wage. This is not a matter of coincidence: women are hired as garment workers by design, due to stereotypes that women are passive, and will not fight back against mistreatment. This is not true, of course; the reason that these women do not fight back is not because of innate passivity, or their gender, but because when they do fight back, they face threats, violence, and withheld pay, which they cannot afford on their very low wages. If you care about the treatment of women, you must care about the treatment of garment workers, because the two are interconnected.
In the same way that when we support unethically produced clothing brands
we contribute to the oppression of women, when we support ethical brands, we can uplift them. When you support clothing made by sustainable processes, by companies that pay their garment workers equitably, you put money back into the pockets of the people who have been negatively affected by this industry for centuries. That impact travels. When women receive living wages, they are able to support themselves, their health, their communities, and their families. Garment making is considered by many to be unskilled labor, despite the technical expertise required. It is time that we gave the women who perform this needed service the recognition, and wages, that they deserve. By supporting brands like Grant BLVD, who guarantee fair wages to their workers, you can vote with your dollar to empower the women who have been affected by this system, and those who want to support them.
(photos via Collective Fashion Justice and VOA)