While Donald Trump’s plan for reciprocal tariffs has been met with overwhelming alarm and skepticism from both sides of the aisle, he still has his supporters.
There are those who believe that his economic plan will help put America first again and help Americans over time, and there are those who see a silver lining in a plan where prices on most items are certain to rise. These people are not Trump supporters by any means—far from it—but they do begrudgingly admit that this plan can be a positive for one simple reason: reducing consumption.
Anti-Consumption Movement
Anti-consumption is a movement that encourages reducing consumption in any way, shape, or form. These people have many reasons for choosing to do so: saving money, political reasons, ecological reasons, or simply because they believe that consumption is a negative and anything you can do to reduce your consumption is inherently a positive act.
In recent months, the subreddit r/anti-consumption has seen significant growth. The moderators of the sub have seen the group double, “Both the subscriber numbers and unique visits to the sub have more than doubled in the past 30 days as compared to the previous 30. The larger the sub gets, the more visible it is on the Reddit popular feed, so that affects the growth rate as well.”
The biggest factor in driving consumption or over-consumption is capitalism, of course. Americans have been over-consuming for years, and the past few years have seen record high amounts of consumption fueled by social media, “treat yourself culture,” and increasingly low costs of consumer goods, especially from Chinese retailers like Shein and Temple.
While dirt-cheap items, including fast fashion, are certainly frugal or money-saving, they also facilitate the ease with which people can consume mindlessly, discard easily, and accumulate more than they need. Just look at all the “hauls” of clothing, decor, and toys that people bring into their homes. They may be cheap monetarily, but there is no denying the cost to our environment, the world, or even our mental health.
Recently, certain viral trends have pushed this need to accumulate away from social media influences and straight to the buying public: just look at the prevalence of Stanley cups, Owala water bottles, and Sephora makeup in preteens. Overconsumption is no longer just for the very rich. The middle class and poor people have access to it, too, and they are taking full advantage.
Tariff Side Effects
This brings us to the side effect that the anti-consumption crowd is happy about: perhaps as prices increase, especially for the worst offenders like Shein and Temple, people will start thinking twice about accumulating for the sake of accumulating. With tariffs expected to add 145% to products from China, the cost may force people to reevaluate what they really need and perhaps do without.
Maybe you don’t need a whole new wardrobe? Maybe you can use something that is already in your closet? Maybe you can repurpose, mend, borrow, or make do? And if you do need to purchase, perhaps you can go to a thrift store or buy second-hand.
This isn’t only regarding clothing. Maybe holiday decor and treats can be toned down. Can we do with less? We might not have a choice, and maybe that is a good thing.
Choosing to do with less can be hugely beneficial for each individual and for society as a whole, even if the economy suffers.
Positives in Dark Times
As someone wrote online in an Anti-Consumption Reddit group:
“My hope here is that we (as a society) go backwards on a few things and return to a time we used to do some things.
- cooking at home and doing many things for yourself that we used to hire people for
- a return of community where we band together more in our neighborhoods to help each other
- using the library for free entertainment
- consuming less farm raised meats and eating more cheap forms of protein to save money (which will reduce the consumption of a highly demanding industry).
- learning that buying things shouldn’t be what you do to make oneself happy
I know these may not be the positives you were hoping for in dark times. But at least they are something.”
The people involved in the subreddit and the movement want to make sure that they are not about boycotting specific stores and products. They are in favor of doing with less and choosing anti-consumption as a whole.
“Importantly, though, discussions of the boycotts are allowed here, but they’re mostly tangential to anti-consumerism as a whole. The sub is not so much about limited boycotts, but on criticism of all consumer culture as a social and political system. ”
Read More:
- Worried About Tariffs? 10 Things You Should Stop Buying and Start Making Instead
- Nervous About Tariffs? 6 Smart & Surprising Ways Frugal People Cut Costs Without Sacrificing Quality
- 6 Ways To Stop Buying Things You Don’t Need As New Tariffs Loom Over the U.S Economy
