Blog #1

Michelle Tin

Today marks the beginning of my journey to “be green” in this anti-consumerism movement. I know it may be tough but definitely manageable. I tend to shop in waves. I can go months at school without shopping anywhere, with the exception of maybe the Davis Flea. However, upon returning home, holidays and malls galore invite me to shop – especially as a way to hang out with friends. Luckily for me, should I get the urge to shop during this challenge, I love to thrift shop. I love finding pieces that I won’t see ten other girls wearing from Forever 21. Unique pieces that tell a story or brand new pieces that managed to arrive, having never been worn, at a fraction at the cost.

Although I am already a generally anti-department store shopper, I do frequent Forever 21, H&M, and Urban Outfitters. It may be hard to not cave if a sale should arise, but who are we kidding? There’s always a sale. In fact, I buy most of my clothes from the sale section and love the satisfaction of getting a good deal. I do have a pet chinchilla, so I am going to assume that if cut flowers and art supplies are allowed, that I can buy him food and bedding if needed.

Not knowing much about this movement, I did a little research and was surprised by how far back it goes! I thought that because consumerism has seemed to significantly increase in the last decade or so, that the movement was a fairly recent thing. However, to my surprise, people have been pushing anti-consumerism for over twenty years now. In 1993, Kalle Lasn, a Vancouver activist, helped launch the first Buy Nothing Day. In the picture below, demonstrators protest consumerism marching through downtown San Francisco.

 

Chronicle photo by Chris Hardy via sfgate.com

I am excited to see if I can manage to stick to the compact. Perhaps I can explore my creative side and make or alter clothes like the Asian American designers did long before even launching their careers. And with multiple birthdays coming up, I suppose I am relieved that I am a terrible gift-buyer, and that birthday gifts from me are usually handmade or freshly baked. 

Inside Source: Nguyen Tu, Thuy Linh. "Crossing the Assembly Line: Skills, Knowledge, and the Borders of Fashion." The Beautiful Generation: Asian Americans and the Cultural Economy of Fashion. 2010.

Outside Source: The Compact: An Anti-Consumerism Movement. http://h2g2.com/approved_entry/A25871141