Introduction
Fast fashion is a term referring to clothing produced cheaply, quickly, and in bulk. Often sold at
incredibly low prices in developed countries, these clothes are made to keep up with fashion
trends. However, the production process of fast fashion raises ethical concerns. Additionally, with
fashion trends going in and out of style quite often and the clothing being of poor quality,
consumers are getting rid of their clothes faster than landfills can take.

Source 1
The authors of the article titled “The Global Environmental Injustice of Fast Fashion” are Rachel
Bick, Erika Halsey and Christine C. Ekenga. All three authors are credible. Both Ekenga and
Halsey have written several academic articles, with Halsey’s having been written specifically about
fast fashion. Bick specializes in global health program planning. Such experience proves the
authors to be credible. The stance taken by the authors is that though inexpensive for consumers,
the environmental and social effects of fast fashion are a global dilemma that must be minimized.
The genre of the text is an academic article. This genre is formally written, features an abstract
summarizing the article, background information on fast fashion, and the main text. The main text
consists of sections pertaining to the negative effects of fast fashion, and sections providing ways
the audience can help make change.

The authors’ audience are the fast fashion industry, consumers, policymakers, and scientists. This is known because it is explicitly stated in the article that these groups of people are needed to help reduce the environmental and social injustices of fast fashion. The tone of the authors is formal and direct because the authors state the negative effects of fast fashion and what can be done by the audience without the use of personal opinions or colloquialisms. The authors’purpose is to inform the audience of the negative effects that fast fashion has on the environment,global textile supply chain workers, and under-resourced communities. This can be seen through the repeated mention of how fast fashion is a global and social injustice. The authors’ purpose is also to persuade the audience to take action towards reducing the negative effects of fast fashion.This is shown by the authors’ suggestions for what each group of the intended audience should do.

Source 2
The article titled “Some untold truths about fast fashion,” is a magazine article written by Emma
Birnbaum in the Just Style online magazine. Just Style provides readers with information on the
fashion and textile industry. So, Birnbaum’s audience are people interested in learning about such
industries, but she aims the article towards a more specific audience. She aims the article towards
young, avid social media users who often post their outfits. This is evident through Birnbaum’s
statements directly aimed at social media users as well as her language. When discussing how
greatly social media affects what people wear, Birnbaum states “To demonstrate a personalised
and intriguing narrative of #lifegoals, maintaining a cohesive “brand” while diversifying your posts
is a must.” This language that she uses is most commonly used and understood among young
people and those who often use social media. So, appropriate language is used to target the
author’s intended audience. The author seems credible because of the several other magazine
articles on fast fashion she has written, along with her position in “Birnbaum & Father,” a strategic
development firm for the global fashion industry. The article features simple language that makes
it easy for all magazine readers to understand, and the author’s opinion on the subject. Birnbaum’s
point of view is that even though fast fashion doesn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon, the
audience should consider the reason as to why it has become increasingly popular; the world is
becoming more digital. The clothes that people wear are an expression of their creativity, but also
must keep up with the trends, and fast fashion allows people to do that by providing inexpensive
and ever changing apparel. Birnbaum stands firm in the belief that once digitalized clothing takes
reign, people won’t need physical apparel to achieve these things, and fast fashion will no longer
be an issue. The author makes this stance clear throughout the text. Near the end of the article
Birnbaum states, “Convincingly realistic digital clothing already exists – and it is only a matter of
time before it mainstreams.” An assertive and optimistic tone is used to present this line of
thinking. Birnbaum is convinced that fast fashion will go out of style once digital clothing becomes
more popular, and she wants to persuade the audience of that.

Source 3
Valerie Flynn is the author of this next newspaper article titled “Where do recycled clothes end up?
Developing countries have become a dumping ground for the West’s fast fashion cast-offs, reports
Valerie Flynn.” The article features a headline, byline, caption, and the story that follows. It was
written for The Sunday Times, a trusted, national newspaper. Flynn is a credible Sunday Times
journalist, who has written many articles published by this outlet. Flynn’s purpose is to inform the
audience, readers of The Sunday Times, of the significant amount of waste in developing countries
that results from fast fashion. One example given in the article is of a second-hand clothing market
in Accra, Ghana. Clothing, most of which is disposed fast fashion, is imported from Europe and
North America to this market and others in Ghana. The issue is that a lot of the clothes are not in a
condition to be sold and must be sent to landfills. According to the article, “Close to 40 per cent of
the imports of second-hand clothing are waste that can’t be salvaged.” Landfills in Ghana and other
developing countries are piled up with tons of clothing that cannot be incinerated due to the lack of
means. Flynn’s tone is objective and informative. She does not take a clear stance. She simply
states the evidence supporting the fact that developing countries have a waste issue directly related
to the fast fashion industry.

Source 4
The final source is a blog post titled, “A List Of Fast Fashion Brands To Avoid & Why.” The
author of this piece is Eva Astoul, a freelance writer who focuses on living more sustainably. Her
background in writing about sustainability makes her a credible author because she would be
familiar with the fast fashion brands that are not sustainable. This piece features background
information on fast fashion, the list of brands to avoid with brief descriptions as to why, and
subheadings to divide the sections and add clarity. Astoul uses a formal yet passionate tone, not
holding back on why the listed brands should not be supported by consumers. The author’s purpose
is to convince the audience to refrain from the fashion brands listed. It is clear that the intended
audience are people who desire a more sustainable and ethical lifestyle because Astoul prefaces by
saying, “Here are 10 examples of fast fashion brands you should avoid if you want to have an
ethical and sustainable wardrobe!” Astoul states in the beginning of her post that people are buying
more clothes than ever but wearing them a lot less. This aligns with Flynn’s article explaining how
much waste results from people purchasing tons of fast fashion only for it to end up among waste
piles in developing countries. Astoul believes that fast fashion is both unsustainable and unethical,
and that supporting such brands should be avoided.

Conclusion
All of the sources acknowledge the unethical and problematic aspects of the fast fashion industry.
Only Birnbaum seems to think that fast fashion will soon go out of style because of how fast the
world is being digitized, but her assertive tone aids in persuading the reader. Flynn is the only
author who does not take a clear stance on fast fashion. However the facts and statistics that she
uses clearly depict an enormous amount of waste caused by fast fashion. The authors bringing to
light the environmental and social consequences of fast fashion allows consumers to be aware take
action. By reusing clothing as opposed to discarding them, the growth of landfills can be slowed,
and by refraining from purchasing from fast fashion brands the fast fashion industry may take a hit
and never recover.

Works Cited

Astoul, Eva. “A List of Fast Fashion Brands to Avoid & Why.” Sustainably Chic, Sustainably 

Chic, 9 Aug. 2021, https://www.sustainably-chic.com/blog/fast-fashion-brands-to-avoid. 

Bick, Rachel, et al. “The global environmental injustice of fast fashion.” Environmental Health: 

A Global Access Science Source, vol. 17, no. 1, 27 Dec. 2018. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A569155838/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=f98957f0. Accessed 19 Sept. 2021.

“Some untold truths about fast fashion.” just-style.com, 22 Mar. 2020, p. NA. Gale Academic 

OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A618255493/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=f34c918b. Accessed 19 Sept. 2021.

“Where do recycled clothes end up? Developing countries have become a dumping ground for the West’s fast fashion cast-offs, reports Valerie Flynn.” Sunday Times [London, England], 23 May 2021, p. 20. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A662702912/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=8dec5a4d. Accessed 24 Sept. 2021.