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By Aidee Lopez

 

Cargo Pants? Why?

If you live under a rock or are above the age of 30, you’re probably not wearing cargo pants at this very moment. While cargo pants might’ve been yours for a time during the 90s and even the 2008 recession, they eventually faded out of your mind and fell into the abyss alongside your old Rzor phone.


The mind-boggling amount of pockets and the wideness can overwhelm those that stick to skinny jeans(get it? Cuz skinny jeans stick to the skin?). But, they are in fact increasingly gaining popularity. As we begin to see them on runways like Balenciaga with its trash bag haute couture and models who are constantly meewing during NY Fashion Week, as well as the street style (& editorial magazines) of many celebrities like Kanye West who now goes as “Ye”, it all begins to trickle down onto the For You Pages (FYP) of TikTok via what is called the “Era of TikTok influencers”– as if there weren't enough influences already–comes the rebirth of cargo pants as the ultimate pair of pants that everyone should and must have in their closet.



Effect of Social Media on Trends

Let’s face it, we all do our best to fit in. It doesn’t matter if you’re “alternative” or not, societal standards are all pretty crushing. Putting social media in the mix only heightens this. So, when a seemingly “trendy” and “cool” person gives you advice on the hottest and latest trends regarding fashion, or when we see these alluring pants on our Pinterest feeds, we tend to listen to this “advice,” initiating what is called “trend hopping.” Masses of people all collectively deciding that so and so is cool while something else is not is laughable.





 

In this case the “so and so” is cargo pants, specifically the cargo pants from the brand Carhartt—a workwear brand. I can fully defend cargo pants. Yes they might be work pants that many of our dads would wear, and yes they might be heavy, but, it’s their durability and overall comfort that is provided by these pants that cause crowds of people to swear by them. But, I’m not here to defend these zombie pants. So while cargo pants can provide plenty of comfort and whatnot, they ultimately become a victim to the fashion cycle and profoundly hated fast fashion because of social media’s power and grasp on people. 


Put simply, the fashion cycle is the way in which clothes get a second chance at life away from the dusty boxes in one's basement. Trends from the past decades begin to appear back in mainstream fashion as the runways label it as “retro” or “vintage”. As a result, we see trends like cargo pants from the 90s making a comeback and into the closets of teens today. While many would assume that the fashion cycle is beneficial to the very apparent problem that the fashion industry is trying to eradicate–clothing in landfills– it makes this problem much more obvious and a hassle to take care of. 


We can think of fashion and its stores with accompanying set prices as a pyramid. Brands like Bottega Venetta, Alexander McQueen, and Rick Owens are considered luxury brands and at the peak of the pyramid. Acne Studios, Jaded London, and the like reside on the second tier. But, after a certain stage, what remains accessible? What can people actually afford? After brands like Lululemon and Zara who’s prices vary from $40-200, what’s next? 


Not everyone can afford these tiers, and that’s where fast fashion brands step in and pick up these trends, spitting out knock-off clothing by the thousands. 


Sounds like a good idea, right? “All people can finally able to keep up with trends!” While this is true to a certain extent, people more often than not end up abusing the convenience that fast fashion brands provide for them. Online shopping, deals and sales 24/7, and regular prices never exceeding the $40 mark, what’s not to love? I mean, $4000 Alexander McQueen cargo pants!? What a rip-off! “Old Navy and Shein is the way to go!”


Nonetheless, this growing demand creates the need for labor. And this is where sweatshops step in to save the day!!


If you’re a history nerd, you’ve probably heard about the Gilded Age and the horrible working conditions many Americans had to endure for literal pennies as a salary. However, through the process of globalization, how countries interact with one another and therefore spread ideas and products in the past century, American brands have switched their workforce from American blue-collar workers to third-world country citizens. But to reconnect this practice to today, sweatshops in foreign countries are letting brands avoid the question of ethics like human and worker rights, all while paying a fraction of the cost it would take to hire people from better-developed countries such as the US or Europe. 


“Thanks for the history lesson,” you say sarcastically as you slip on your almost vintage-looking Nirvana shirt from the discount rack of Hot Topic, but how does it concern you specifically? Why should you care? If you lack empathy I guess you could be asking yourself these questions. What makes this problem

 

2. Matter is the horrible quality of your new pair of “super cool” pants that don’t look like saran wrap whatsoever. You don’t want kids at school to make fun of you, do you? This is why it matters to you, for the preservation of self, we all do it. “You get what you pay for.” Isn’t just a saying in the fashion industry. 


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Published: true

Updated: Wed Jun 05 2024 07:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

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Cargo Pants & “Trend Hopping”

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By Aidee Lopez

 

Cargo Pants? Why?

If you live under a rock or are above the age of 30, you’re probably not wearing cargo pants at this very moment. While cargo pants might’ve been yours for a time during the 90s and even the 2008 recession, they eventually faded out of your mind and fell into the abyss alongside your old Rzor phone.


The mind-boggling amount of pockets and the wideness can overwhelm those that stick to skinny jeans(get it? Cuz skinny jeans stick to the skin?). But, they are in fact increasingly gaining popularity. As we begin to see them on runways like Balenciaga with its trash bag haute couture and models who are constantly meewing during NY Fashion Week, as well as the street style (& editorial magazines) of many celebrities like Kanye West who now goes as “Ye”, it all begins to trickle down onto the For You Pages (FYP) of TikTok via what is called the “Era of TikTok influencers”– as if there weren't enough influences already–comes the rebirth of cargo pants as the ultimate pair of pants that everyone should and must have in their closet.



Effect of Social Media on Trends

Let’s face it, we all do our best to fit in. It doesn’t matter if you’re “alternative” or not, societal standards are all pretty crushing. Putting social media in the mix only heightens this. So, when a seemingly “trendy” and “cool” person gives you advice on the hottest and latest trends regarding fashion, or when we see these alluring pants on our Pinterest feeds, we tend to listen to this “advice,” initiating what is called “trend hopping.” Masses of people all collectively deciding that so and so is cool while something else is not is laughable.





 

In this case the “so and so” is cargo pants, specifically the cargo pants from the brand Carhartt—a workwear brand. I can fully defend cargo pants. Yes they might be work pants that many of our dads would wear, and yes they might be heavy, but, it’s their durability and overall comfort that is provided by these pants that cause crowds of people to swear by them. But, I’m not here to defend these zombie pants. So while cargo pants can provide plenty of comfort and whatnot, they ultimately become a victim to the fashion cycle and profoundly hated fast fashion because of social media’s power and grasp on people. 


Put simply, the fashion cycle is the way in which clothes get a second chance at life away from the dusty boxes in one's basement. Trends from the past decades begin to appear back in mainstream fashion as the runways label it as “retro” or “vintage”. As a result, we see trends like cargo pants from the 90s making a comeback and into the closets of teens today. While many would assume that the fashion cycle is beneficial to the very apparent problem that the fashion industry is trying to eradicate–clothing in landfills– it makes this problem much more obvious and a hassle to take care of. 


We can think of fashion and its stores with accompanying set prices as a pyramid. Brands like Bottega Venetta, Alexander McQueen, and Rick Owens are considered luxury brands and at the peak of the pyramid. Acne Studios, Jaded London, and the like reside on the second tier. But, after a certain stage, what remains accessible? What can people actually afford? After brands like Lululemon and Zara who’s prices vary from $40-200, what’s next? 


Not everyone can afford these tiers, and that’s where fast fashion brands step in and pick up these trends, spitting out knock-off clothing by the thousands. 


Sounds like a good idea, right? “All people can finally able to keep up with trends!” While this is true to a certain extent, people more often than not end up abusing the convenience that fast fashion brands provide for them. Online shopping, deals and sales 24/7, and regular prices never exceeding the $40 mark, what’s not to love? I mean, $4000 Alexander McQueen cargo pants!? What a rip-off! “Old Navy and Shein is the way to go!”


Nonetheless, this growing demand creates the need for labor. And this is where sweatshops step in to save the day!!


If you’re a history nerd, you’ve probably heard about the Gilded Age and the horrible working conditions many Americans had to endure for literal pennies as a salary. However, through the process of globalization, how countries interact with one another and therefore spread ideas and products in the past century, American brands have switched their workforce from American blue-collar workers to third-world country citizens. But to reconnect this practice to today, sweatshops in foreign countries are letting brands avoid the question of ethics like human and worker rights, all while paying a fraction of the cost it would take to hire people from better-developed countries such as the US or Europe. 


“Thanks for the history lesson,” you say sarcastically as you slip on your almost vintage-looking Nirvana shirt from the discount rack of Hot Topic, but how does it concern you specifically? Why should you care? If you lack empathy I guess you could be asking yourself these questions. What makes this problem

 

2. Matter is the horrible quality of your new pair of “super cool” pants that don’t look like saran wrap whatsoever. You don’t want kids at school to make fun of you, do you? This is why it matters to you, for the preservation of self, we all do it. “You get what you pay for.” Isn’t just a saying in the fashion industry. 


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