Written by Lily (Year 11)
Consumerism. It’s a word that is in all of our lives, even if it is not spoken.
There is a product for everything. We find ourselves in a position where it is incredibly easy to buy things that you could easily live without. Why are people constantly shopping? Perhaps it is a matter of convenience – it’s a lot easier to buy a new pair of jeans than sew up that hole. You don’t have time to fix that button, do you? It’ll take too much time, just buy a new one it’s only £10. We will happily pay the price for anything that makes our lives more efficient. But perhaps it is society? It has become ingrained in us that there is a correlation between happiness and our material belongings. This is not a new concept. If you look back at the 1920s during the ‘boom’, everyone was literally buying into ‘the American dream’. Suddenly everything was cheap thanks to production lines. Advertising became a normal integrated part of life with billboards and sponsored radio programs. With increasing access to technology nowadays, the capabilities for advertising are endless and seemingly impassable.
But why is consumerism bad? Is it bad? In this current Coronavirus world, it is clear how dependent our economy is on our ability to shop. People’s jobs and lives are reliant on us buying things. So perhaps shopping isn’t bad? I spent the first few weeks of lockdown perusing sales online and buying summer clothes, we bought a new hammock, exercise equipment, and new office supplies. Part of this spending was out of necessity as my Dad needed a desk so he could work at home, but I didn’t need new makeup. Shopping is a way to fill the time and let’s be honest, it’s fun. But of course, there are a lot of problems with modern-day consumerism: fast fashion, single-use plastics, sweatshops, animal cruelty, and recently the problem of racial inequality in a lot of large companies. Since I am moving next week I have been consciously thinking about the amount of stuff in my life; it is in the excess. A lot of the things I own, I don’t use or need and I have realised that I need to be more intentional about my purchases.
So how can we use consumerism for good? It is not possible to just tell everyone not to buy anything and we can’t all become minimalists overnight. But one thing that is becoming ever more important in this new Covid-19 world is social responsibility. It is as clear as ever that we each have obligations to our community. We need to stop the spread of Covid-19, protect our vulnerable, and support our key workers. By not staying 2m away from people you are actively putting people in genuine danger; a scary statement but an essential one. Something as serious as this, reveals people’s priorities. Are you concerned about the health of your family more than you want to hug your friends? For a lot of us, it is the first time in life that we have social responsibility. We are used to our actions having consequences on ourselves, for example failing a test because you didn’t revise, but now your actions have consequences on others. So now it’s time for all of us to put our intentions at the forefront of our lives.
This responsibility is not something that should disappear with Covid-19. We need to utilise it in every aspect of our lives. It is no longer sufficient to be an activist in word, you need to be an activist in action. Don’t just clap for the NHS, social distance. Don’t just tweet ‘Black Lives Matter’, sign petitions and donate. Don’t just repost climate change articles, stop buying single-use plastics. And this is where I think consumerism can be a force for good. Our economy is reliant on us shopping, so boycott those racist companies, stop buying single-use, stop buying from companies that don’t line up with your values just because it’s convenient. We need to make fundamental changes to our lives to see global change. Being anti-racist or eco-friendly shouldn’t be seen as a personality trait or radical; these ideas should be a social norm. So be intentional about how you spend your money, invest in sustainable companies that use your money to invest in social change. If you want change, invest in it.
A couple of resources include:
There are also some great apps such as Renoon and Good On You.