It's one of those realities that we are all guilty of turning a blind eye to, but it must be faced. Trade regulations in our country are not what most of us would hope. There are millions of people all over the globe forced into sweatshop labor. Sweatshop labor can involve child labor, forced overtime, unsafe working conditions, abominable wages, and intimidation of anyone trying to form a union. It is a life of drudgery and indentured servants, and these people pay a huge price for the things we wear, or allow our children to play with everyday.
This was difficult for me to come to terms with, and I am still struggling to find ways to reduce my personal involvement in these profits. Today I tried to find clothing marked "fair trade" online, and did manage to come across some sites --www.thehungersite.com, www.nosweatapparel.com, and www.peaceofmyheartonline.com were my favorites--but it is woefully sad how few options there are out there. I applaud these sites for the work they are doing, though, and hope to see many more like them.
I have decided, however, that until fair trade becomes more prevalent, the best thing I can is to purchase my clothes and my family's clothes at thrift stores and ebay. In this way, we will be a) reducing our carbon footprint by recycling clothing, and b) not contributing to the demand for more clothing produced via unethical and morally wrong methods. This will take some adjustment, but I am confident we can do it. I've never been a person who cared at all about brand names, and neither is my husband, thank goodness. I am hopeful that we will also be teaching our son that clothes can only define who you are if you are using them to help someone else. Growing up in home where we were not financially secure was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. I learned to see the world in a broader sense, not within the lines of brand names, cash, and "status" symbols. My hope is that my son will learn the same lessons, even though we have more means than my parents did.
I am committed to following through with this effort. In the event that we can't a) buy via ebay or thrift stores or b) buy fair trade, we will donate to the Alliance for Global Justice, which promotes"development of a unified domestic and international movement of transformational grassroots organizations that promote a socially, ecologically and economically just world."
Maybe our meager awareness and conscience toward these injustices will help just one person working in a sweatshop attain basic rights. It's definitely worth any effort.
Here is a list of commonly known sweatshop users (based soley on notes I have taken on the subject):
Nike
Phillips-Van Heusen
Disney
Guess?
The Gap
Banana Republic
Old Navy
Tommy Hilfiger
Reebok
Levi Straus
Liz Caliborne
Ralph Lauren
Mattel
Wal-Mart
Hanes
Kohl's
K-mart
Abercrombie & Fitch
JC Penney
Pier 1 Imports
Sears
Mattel
Bugle Boy
American Eagle
Adidas
The list goes on, and that's the problem. There is simply no way to know who DOESN'T use these. And that's the saddest part.
No comments:
Post a Comment