The devil wears fast fashion.

I'm in Milan right now, during fashion week, and all I can think about is slow fashion and why we're so not there yet.

This issue is therefore about the grave consequences of fast fashion on the world, specifically on African countries, and a high-profile case in the DRC that also includes a lot of foreign citizens. Plus, a YouTuber's fun self-experiment in said slow fashion, why the Toyota Land Cruiser has become some sort of a power symbol in many African countries, a conversation about Gazan art, Digital Media Africa 2024, and so much more.

The global fashion industry is hurting African countries --- new report

What happened:
A new report from Greenpeace Africa and Greenpeace Germany is shedding light on the massive environmental and public health issues caused by the global secondhand clothing trade, especially in Ghana.

Why this matters:
he fast fashion industry is wreaking havoc on the environment, especially in Africa. Brands are producing more clothing than the world can handle, and once the trend is over, the clothes are discarded. Unfortunately, a lot of this waste ends up in poorer countries. Activists are saying it's time to rethink our approach to fashion---prioritizing quality over quantity and tackling the throwaway culture that's fueling this crisis.

Tell me more:
The report highlights how discarded clothes from wealthier nations (mostly fast fashion) are severely impacting Ghana's environment and communities. Millions of items are shipped there every week, but almost half are unusable. These clothes often end up in informal dumpsites or are burned in public areas, causing serious air, soil, and water pollution, which threatens the health of local people.

Zoom out:
Ghana isn't alone in this. The secondhand clothing trade is widespread across Africa, including in countries like Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, and Uganda.

Why do they burn them?
The quality of secondhand clothes has dropped significantly. In Kenya, for instance, about 458 million of the 900 million used clothes imported in 2021 were essentially worthless. Traders often discard 20--50% of the clothes they buy because they're in such bad condition.

Did you know?
African activists are taking on fast fashion. Mamba Online's Angelo C Louw introduces four of them. For example, Joseph Obel (Kenya) creates costumes using recycled materials (after realizing how much the film and theatre industry contributes to fast fashion by designing new costumes with every production which pile up in a corner afterwards). Sammy Oteng (Ghana) also repurposes secondhand clothing while exploring issues of neo-colonialism, sexuality and gender fluidity. Craig Jacobs (South Africa) built a sustainability brand, Fundudzi by Craig Jacobs. Chemitei Janet (Kenya) is a slow fashion educator on social media, encouraging mindful clothing habits.

37 people have been sentenced to death in the DRC in a high-profile case

What happened:
37 people, including citizens from the US, UK, Belgium, and Canada, have been sentenced to death in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for attempting to overthrow the president. BBC's Wedaeli Chibelushi reports on this high-profile case.

Why this matters:
Although the DRC hasn't carried out a death sentence in about 20 years, the government ended its moratorium on capital punishment in March, citing the need to purge "traitors" from the military. So far, no death penalties have been enforced under this new policy.

Refresher: ...