In this op-ed, Teen Vogue’s digital director, Alyssa Hardy, discusses the stark juxtaposition between the glamour of New York Fashion Week and the reality of fashion work in the United States in 2026.

The American fashion story is an immigrant one. Whether it’s the young Jewish, Italian, and German immigrants who worked at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in the early 20th century, whose labor movement changed the country; the hundreds of Latin American garment workers in Los Angeles, whose fight for better working conditions exposed the dark side of “Made in America” clothing; or the seamstresses in New York’s Garment District, who have kept a struggling sector of the city alive as designers move their manufacturing overseas, the United States simply can’t stake any real claim on the fashion industry without acknowledging the very people who have upheld it for well over a century.

As we head into New York Fashion Week, this fact feels more important than ever. The Trump administration continues to heighten the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), affecting workers in cities around the country, including LA and NYC, where many fashion workers live. Reports have highlighted several instances over the last year when factories were targeted, leaving employees scared for their safety and the safety of their loved ones. For example, more than a dozen garment workers were arrested while at work at Ambiance Apparel in Los Angeles. And in New York, an ICE raid targeted Canal Street sellers; although they don’t make clothing, licensed and unlicensed vendors are part of the city’s fashion ecosystem, which many fashion insiders laud.

Juxtapose these instances with the glossy side of American fashion that’s about to receive a lot of attention. I, for one, can’t just watch beautiful clothes cascade down dozens of runways, celebrate designers, and admire images of celebrity appearances without calling for the protection of those who make it all come to life. It’s part of a responsibility for anyone who participates in fashion to acknowledge the calls for support. Ignoring the threat to these workers is cruel.

“Immigrants are such a crucial part of the fashion industry, and they’ve been under heightened attack for over a year,” Marissa Nuncio, executive director of the Garment Worker Center in Los Angeles, tells me in an email, “though they have historically been targets of ICE raids under both parties. Garment workers are afraid to go to work and go outside.”

Nuncio continues, “ICE raids have not slowed down in Los Angeles; they’ve only intensified. And the threat to this workforce has been felt across the supply chain. Traffic has gone down 37% in Los Angeles’s Fashion District since last June.”

Of course, not every American brand is made in the US—far from it. But that’s even more of a reason to highlight the broken system that relies on immigrant laborers in order to exist but demonizes their very presence. “Businesses are struggling to exist, with matters made worse by Trump’s tariffs. When businesses struggle, workers struggle,” Nuncio explains. “It’s crucial to find ways to materially support immigrant communities, whether through donating or joining a rapid-response or mutual-aid network.”

There’s a twisted irony to tariffs that are purportedly aimed at increasing manufacturing but are happening in tandem with immigration raids. In order to bring any garment-manufacturing jobs to the US, the workers with the skills to grow the industry need protection.

As our limited attention spans turn to the moments of glamour we’ll see over the next month (which, to be clear, are incredible and part of why I love clothing so much), we have to remember to tell the whole story. The future of a meaningful US fashion industry, and New York Fashion Week, depends on it.