The dark side of fast fashion recycling | May 11, 2026

What's up, sunshine? Hope your weekend was more refreshing than the center seat of a cucumber, and I hope you showed all the mother figures out there in your world some love. We are kicking off the week with some in-depth investigations, and I know today is technically May 11th, but we could not miss an opportunity to highlight your 10 out of 10 moments like we do on every 10th of the month, so stay tuned for that. Let's go. We begin with a story that may have many of us rethinking the environmental impact of our next outfits. The fashion industry, or fast fashion industry, has brought trendy looks from the runway to store shelves in record time, but it's also taking a big toll on our planet. Each year, the world generates about 92 million metric tons of textile waste, and fast fashion is only accelerating this crisis. In India, all that discarded clothing is fueling a booming billion-dollar recycling industry, but for some workers, it's coming at a cost of their health. Our Hanako Montgomery has more on the industry's hidden human toll. In India's Panipat, the world's wardrobe is given new life. A million tons of discarded clothes get recycled here every year, arriving in relentless waves. This is incredible. Look at this. This is unbelievable. This entire room is covered in clothing. Oh my gosh, this has a tag that says Goodwill. This is a thrift store in the United States. A lot of the garments are collected from charity bins across places like the US, UK, and Japan, then sent thousands of miles across the world. Once here, they're first sorted by color, shredded, and spun into yarn. Then at another factory, they're woven into rugs and carpets to be sold back to the countries the clothes first came from. In US we are working with like TJ Max and then like Walmart, Target, Hobby Lobby, Kirkland. So So basically all the brands that every American has heard of. Panipat's textile recycling industry is worth billions. Our investigation found this profitable fix for the world's and America's fast fashion waste comes at a sickening cost. Most factories operate informally with little oversight. I've only been standing here for 5 minutes and look, I'm already covered in dust. The air workers breathe daily is suffocating and inescapable. Plumes of lint enveloping them wherever they turn. But it's difficult to speak to workers under their employers watchful eye. So we go visit a local doctor who treats the worst of cases. Do people die from these diseases? If they inhale the same air daily on the daily basis, yes, it definitely shortens their lifespan. Subhash has been in and out of hospitals for months. Are you in a lot of pain? Are you suffering? Yes, it's painful. It's difficult to eat. It's difficult to walk. But quitting isn't an option. He has three kids to feed. To understand why more isn't being done to protect the nearly a million workers this industry employs, we speak to the head of Panipat's dying association. He insists there's no real problem. So while we've been in Panipat, we visited a few dying units where there were no masks, no goggles, no gloves being worn. Why is that? They are uneducated. That's why they don't wear masks. Everything is provided by the boss. But in every informal factory we visited, not once did we see these rules enforced. Instead, we saw workers left breathless and exposed with nowhere else to go. But the damage extends far beyond factory walls to an ecosystem that millions depend on. They use really hazardous chemicals to bleach textiles, but they don't have good drainage systems, so the water is actually allowed to seep into the surrounding environment, poisoning the people and also the land here. We've contacted several government agencies for comment on our findings. None replied. We thought we were giving these clothes a second life. But here, they're costing people theirs and leaving them and their city buried in our waste. The 2026 FIFA World Cup is coming to North America this summer and right at the heart of it all, Atlanta, Georgia. This week I sat down with Arthur Blank and his son Josh Blank following the ribbon cutting of the brand new Arthur M. Blank US Soccer National Training Center here in Georgia. Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium is hosting eight matches including a semi-final. And footy is exploding faster than a penalty kick to the top corner here. Some are even calling Atlanta the soccer capital of America and the Blank family's played a huge role in helping to make that happen. So, what impact could the World Cup have on business, culture, and future generations of players? Let's kick it with the Blanks. Soccer brings um not only young people together, but people together and a very unique way. Soccer has become a big part of our business, but it's a big part of the community, it's a big part of the life of so many people in the Atlanta region, so we're thrilled to be part of it. Josh, I'm not so sure that the global audience might understand just how passionate footy fans are in America. Talk in Europe, talk in South America, right? What's one thing you wish that global audience knew about the American footy fans? Our love for the sport is as authentic and as die hard as these countries continents that the sport has been an existing property and played for hundreds and hundreds of more years. MLS has only been around for for 30 years and the Premier League and all these other leagues have been around for a hundred plus and while we're still young that certainly doesn't mean that our passion for the sport, our energy for the teams is is any less. Our passion for the sport is is incredibly high and we're incredibly excited to show that off this summer, too. The Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center. You've given so much of your money to causes, to businesses. Why soccer? Why was that important to you? When Cindy Cone, the chairperson and J.T. Batson, our CEO of U.S. Soccer Federation approached us, my easy answer was yes. I mean, they did their pitch, but actually within 5 minutes I was going to say yes. U.S. Soccer was the only nation that was in the top 30 without a permanent home. And having the opportunity to be a part of that and and build it, hopefully will then elevate U.S. as a soccer nation and as a federation, both men's, women's, youth, and across the board. It's a It's an exciting opportunity. And one that that the U.S. definitely needed. Who's more competitive between the two of you? Wow. I'm going to say me just selfishly, but I think it could go either way. He has all of his marathon times written down and I've done two. And he has me beat on the marathon, but I have a beat on the half marathon. So, we go back and forth on that. What do you say? >> I think we're both very competitive. Yeah, I mean, our whole family is actually, I would say. Um, but he's definitely right at the top of the stack. Pop quiz, hotshot. What popular drink was invented in Taiwan? Orange soda, bubble tea, slushies, or matcha latte? >> If you said bubble tea, nailed it. In the 1980s, the famous night markets in Taiwan began to combine milk, tea, and chewy tapioca pearls for a late-night pick-me-up. Whale, oh whale, what do we have here? Taiwan's Coast Guard and volunteers have stepped up to rescue a pod of pygmy killer whales stranded on a beach in Taiwan. The squad of four, including two males, two females, one being pregnant, were found half submerged by the Donjiang Bridge in New Taipei City. Though they've got whale in their name, they're actually a species of dolphin. The Coast Guard tended to the dolphins by covering them in wet blankets, pouring seawater over their bodies. After being evaluated at a rescue center, the Taiwan Cetacean Society said they were ready to wave goodbye and return home. They were released in pairs back into the ocean. Today's story getting a 10 out of 10, everyone watching this show right now, you. Every 10th of the month, we highlight some of our viewers' 10 out of 10 moments of the year so far. And this month, so many moments of greatness. What a better way to start than by rocking out to our theme song played by Connor from California. Connor learned all of that by ear and put his own little twist on it. We love it. Shout out to all of you in Jeff's class at Prospect Sierra in El Cerrito, California. >> [music] >> Next up, we are punting it across the country and touchdown at PikeView High School in West Virginia. The Princeton Tigers, led by Coach Posich, won the state title championship, the first time in their program's history, way to rise up. Next shout out goes to Crews Middle School in Lawrenceville, Georgia. These seventh grade reporters made their very own CNN 10 shows using what they learned about Southwest Asia. Let's take a look at some of these superstars in action. What's up, sunshine? I hope you're having a wonderful day. Pop quiz, hot shot. Which religion has been fighting itself for years? Play that Friday music, y'all. We are CNN 10. Well, dag nab it. I hope my boss is not watching that. Do not come for my job, y'all. Well done. Next up, we are going sky-high. Clayton Anderson, a 10th grader from Duluth, Minnesota, took these stellar photos of the Northern Lights. Thank you for sharing this magical moment with us. Lots of creativity. Big wins from all of you this month. Keep it up and send us your videos, your photos to our email at cnn10@cnn.com for June's 10 out of 10 moments. We look forward to them. Hope you have a marvelous Monday. We're going to see you right back here tomorrow. I'm Coy Wire. We are CNN 10. >> [music]