The True Cost: The Bitter Truth behind Fast Fashion

Introduction
The True Cost by Andrew Morgan is a documentary film about the clothes we wear, how
the people make them (chemicals, their salary a day or montly, the effects of harmful chemicals to
their children). The true cost film is not about attractiveness to the clothing or excitement of the
fashion trends. Instead it shows us the dark side of global fast fashion supply. A story about greed
and fear, power and poverty. Examining the fashion human, social and enviromnetal cost. The
team traveled over thirteen countries to collect information and they conducted interviews with
different actors, influencers of fashion industry, including environmetalists, garment workers,
factory owners etc.

Discussion
The True Cost after Rana Plaza collapsed in 2013. After discovering the idustry’s human
rights violations and environmental impacts encouraged them to make a documentary film.
Morgan discusses how people can make a difference. As awareness to growing fashion industry
imapacts on our world on careless production and endless consumption and who believe that there
are better ways of making clothers.
These are the famous brands on making high profit Topshop, Zara, H&M, Forever 21 etc.

Patagonia, Rideway the VP of Environmental Affairs argues that without a reduction consumption,
the health of our planet will continue to decline. And the overty will continue to risen up. They
want the consumer to realize that true happiness is not achieved by owning more stuff and
recognize the impacts of their consumption.

Human Cost
In Bangladesh, garment workers only earn less than 3 dollars a day and those workers who
are new only earn 10 dollars a month based on Shima Akhter (garment worker) salary. In the Rana
Plaza disaster as the year 2013, thousands of people killed and many of them were injured and still
they were forced back in to work. According to Morgan, the Rana Plaza incident brought into light
of global inequities behind chea clothing and was a call to action. Workers have no voice and face
difficulties demanding their rights. Shima states that they were beaten up by their managers for
demanding better working conditions yet they are not giving their workers enough salaries for their
works. The film light on high level of inequality and the fact that we are increasingly disconnected
from the people who make our clothes.
Environmental Cost
In the film, illustrates the environmental damage resulting from the industry’s massive
growth. Morgan addresses that the garment industry is the second most polluting industry next to
oil industry. Schragger oints out that a lot of resources we use are not accounted for the cost of
producing clothes. Cotton represents nearly half of the total fiber used to make clothing today. But
based on Pepper 80% of cotton has generatically modified using vast amounts of water and
chemicals such as pesticides and insecticides have impacts on both land and human health. The
skin is the largest organ on the body and these chemicals are assed into the bloodstream of the
people who wera those clothes.

Social Cost
On the other hand, the film also looks at the consumption side. Clothing has been
something we used fo a long period of time, but with availability and accessibility of chea clothing
it has becaome disposable. (Ozdamar-Ertekin and Atik 2015). As for Siegle states fast fashion
instead of the tradictional two seasons a year, we now have fifty-two seasons a year. Which means
that the stores have new coming clothes every week. In western countries the need for governments
and corporations to have consumption at such high levels is the economic system.

Let the benefits be shared globally .

Insights/Reflection
(Yarza) For me, as a student, this film is an eye opener. Some people will choose to harm
you so that they will have good or high income. Film shows how greedy and selfish Americans
are. It also breaks my heart watching those people risking their lives for us to have clothes to wear.
They are risking their children’s health beacause of chemicals like pecticides. Plus they don’t have
access in health care, not gaining enough salary. The fact that government should be the one whose
fighting for their country but they chose to make money out of it. If I will buy clothes I will use it
for a long time not like a chewing gum. We must stop using people like things and start treating
them in human ways.

Conclusion and Recommendation