In the high stakes world of the fashion industry, glamour, trends, sales and celebrity rule. Ethics is a word not commonly spoken in relation to the fashion industry, nor has a great deal of concern been expressed by it; fortunately that’s changing.

The deaths of models like 21 year old Ana Carolina Reston who at 5’8” weighed 88 pounds and sister Luisel Ramos (18 years old, pictured below), both of whom died almost literally on the catwalk, have prompted public outcry from around the world and sharp criticism of practices that promote dangerous standards of beauty

Accounts of unbearable factory conditions and forced child labor at popular retail manufacturers like The Gap have created greater awareness and consumer demands for responsibly and even locally made goods.

Contemporary Society's Skewed Definition of Beauty

Stylist Sybilla Smith

Comments on The Role of Ethics in Fashion

“The place where ethics comes up around wardrobe and styling is how women are portrayed in advertising. It is an issue that includes messages to girls about beauty and body image as well as the sexual politics of the working women/mother."

"Fashion does not disregard women and body image as much as sell and celebrate a rare ideal. And all that is done to achieve [that ideal look] from the panel of experts to photoshop?! - what you see is not real. Women of different sizes and ethnicities are not given appropriate representation and what we see on film and in magazines is far from the walking individual.“