“Sustainability, as defined and measured in fashion, is currently an elitist, even imperialistic concept,” says Veronica Kassatly, analyst and consultant for data-based sustainability claims. In this four-part series, Kassatly examines how Western brands, consumers, and activists define the conversation around sustainability, based on their own interests and cultural values. She brings light to unfounded assertions about the long-lasting fiber traditions of wool, silk, and alpaca production in an effort to map out better solutions for moving toward “sustainable” fashion that is truly sustainable and socially just.
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Silk: Caught in a Web of Deceit
In a series of 3 articles, I hope to shed some light on the absurdity and injustice of many of the claims ‘sustainable’ fashion has leveled against silk.
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Silk Stories Part 3: White Space or Twelve Million People Don’t Matter
In this third and final article of our Silk Stories series, we look at a double standard employed by sustainable fashion to demonize silk: the notion that carbon offsetting applies to all trees but mulberry trees.
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Silk Stories Part 2: Yellow Peril or Green Dressing
In this second piece of our Silk Stories series, we examine fashion’s acquiescence to – or perhaps exploitation of – vegan supremacy in sustainability analysis, and the partial and selective manner in which both costs and benefits are assigned to silk production.
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Silk Stories Part 1: The Bodies of Bodhisattvas Transformed, the Manifestation of Unparalleled Generosity
Sustainable fashion’s demonization of silk is unjustified. It’s not a conspiracy. It’s capitalism. Here’s what various stakeholders have to gain from making false claims against silk.
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