We all know how to express ourselves through fashion. The typical jock could be found in a varsity jackets and Adidas slides. The typical cheerleader could be found in a mini skirt and form-fitting top. And there’s always that one girl who will show up to school in six-inch heels and some creation of her own. Trends can be picked out at school, the mall, and magazines, almost anywhere. A new trend that has become popular is “going green”.

Who knew the environment could be a trend? There are graphic tees with all sorts of “go green” slogans like: Save our Planet, Recycle, or Be the Change. Most of the people who wear these shirts are hypocritical. Just because you wear a shirt that says, “Save our Planet,” doesn’t mean you are contributing to help our planet. Wearing a shirt that says, “Recycle,” means nothing if you don’t recycle. Being the change has little to do with wearing a shirt that says, “Be the Change.” If you are wearing something instructing others to do eco-friendly tasks, you should also be doing those tasks. It would be hypocritical not to do what you are telling everybody else to do.

Not only are wearers of the trend being hypocritical, but stores selling the trend are too. Just because a shirt has the recycling symbol on it, it doesn’t mean the shirt is environmentally friendly. Many shirts promoting eco-friendliness are made out of fabrics that are no eco-friendly. Non-organic cotton is sprayed with pesticides and insecticides, which are harmful to the environment. If a shirt has one of these slogans on it, the shirt should at least be made from organic fibers like bamboo. If shirts with eco-friendly slogans were actually eco-friendly it would make the people wearing the shirts less hypocritical.

I’m not completely against the concept of “going green” being a trend in fashion. I think it’s a great step in informing people about the damage being done to our planet everyday, but informing people is just one of the steps that needs to be taken. Nowadays everybody knows what global warming is and what is causing it. Now we just need to take the next couples of steps in stopping it and that is beyond the power of fashion.