On fur, sweatshops, prison and unfair labor practices

Republishing: Original post January 29, 2013  How far have we come?

"The only things that do not change are dead things. Clothes are exceedingly vital and alive." 

-Jacques Worth, 1927

Which of these is this coat? Alive or dead?

And this leopard?

I have written many posts over the years on this very topic (see my old blog to follow the path this post will lead), trying to wrap my head around all of the complexities of treating people fairly, compensating them for their work, and consuming resources responsibly.  I know these things are important.  I know that people are passionate about these things. I know that everyone, every  single  person on the planet matters equally. I know that we need to take a good look at ourselves, how we fill our closets and bellies, and how we treat one another.

The caption of the original photo above, (from my family's collection) originally from TWA Aviation Press Pictures, reads, "NY International Airport, February 11, 1960. Glamourous Eva Gabor, who appreared on the Jack Parr Show last night, is pictured wearing a leopard coat prior to boarding a TWA Jetliner to Los Angeles where she will enjoy a brief visit."

The airport had not yet been renamed JFK, for obvious reasons... but notice the mention of the leopard coat? My, how times have changed.

Or... have they?

This coat would have been quite a status symbol in those days, but would now be a very unpopular item (to put it mildly), if worn by any celebrity. While such a coat, which once turned heads, now turns stomachs, are animal rights just the popular issue right now, due to the marketing efforts of groups like PETA? Does it matter that her coat was once an actual leopard?  Yes, it does.

This got me thinking (again).  We celebrate the person wearing the item, cooing and sighing as they float down the red carpet, as the TV correspondent breathlessly calls out, "Who are you wearing?" The name assigned to the garment is almost always a brand or a fashion icon, but what an interesting experiment it would be to try those interviews on the bustling streets of midtown Manhattan, or Boise, Idaho, or Phoenix, Arizona.  Would they know?  Would they care?  Would you? Do we?

I know there are always other fish to fry, but I want to specifically turn your attention to an article on sweatshop labor, offered by BBC News. Do we think about the human price paid when we buy $5 T-shirts? According to the article, workers in Burkina Faso would love to stop laboring for such low wages, but, unfortunately, cotton is their only cash crop.

I also noticed an article online this morning about Riker's Island inmates wanting to learn about fashion theory. This is said to be the most popular of the course offerings for the prison population's female inmates. Students also learn, as part of this course, about third-world sweatshops and fast-fashion retailers, in addition to exploring their own potential.

It seems that when we talk about making clothing, we inevitably end up talking about bigger issues as well.  Here in the US, we talk about outsourcing, and how low wages are being paid to foreign workers to keep our clothing prices low.  But we also talk about social consciousness and a more global perspective on how our decisions impact all of us.

Excerpted from a Times Style Section article on the same topic:

"Chyiome handbag designer and Project Runway alum Anna Lynett Moss teaches the class, which tackles cultural identity and design process by narrowing in on provocative style and design approaches. “People with creative training are in a unique position to envision innovative alternatives to some of our deepest social problems,” she explained to Of a Kind. The designer and humanitarian—she is developing a socially—conscious accessories line with the UN–chooses talking points that range from fashion shows to magazine spreads to educate and enlighten."

Read more: http://style.time.com/2013/01/23/rikers-islands-most-popular-class-fashion-theory/#ixzz2JNI8NIaF

Here's the kicker, on Facebook this morning, I was inspired to click on the face of a person I vaguely recognized from high school, who is connected to another friend from high school.  We weren't friends because we were in different grades and didn't hang out with the same groups of people, but I recognized her name, and noticed she had become an author.  Because we (my family) are avid readers, I clicked through the link to her book, and was just FLOORED... positively FLOORED by the "Jean's Story" section of her profile, and then downloaded the book to my Kindle immediately.   I hope you will click through to the link, but if you don't choose to, just know that she was actually going to the same high school I was every day, just after climbing out of miserable conditions, and assisting her mother in a Chinatown sweatshop. Her name is Jean Kwok, and a video of her discussing the (fiction) book can be found here.

So, I'm having one of those astounding "You mean, right here? In my lifetime?  My peers?" kinda moments.

Clothing.  Everyone gets dressed everyday.  But it symbolizes something far greater. Bigger stories can always be told surrounding the process that results in a wearable item. Heads are needed to design it, hands are needed to create it, and hearts are needed to appreciate and love it. In our Project Runway culture now, we should be more aware than ever what it takes to make our clothing.

So now, here's my bigger point... as you read this, "Who" are you wearing?  You pulled on a sweatshirt you randomly snatched up for a few bucks at a huge discount store.  Or maybe you made it yourself.  Or maybe a well known artist or designer made it. Could your clothing be made in a prison work program, a foreign work camp, a local sweatshop? Does it matter where it came from, and who made it? Yes.  Clearly it does. More than we realize.  And more than we are willing to admit.

Let's make something ourselves, shall we?  With our own hands, head, and heart.  Need to go fabric shopping?  I've got you covered.  If you want to find fun places to shop in the garment district, sharing the creative energy of a group, come along on a Speakeasy tour.

When Fashion Bloggers go to Cambodia... "Who" are you wearing?

Send three Norwegian fashion bloggers to work in a Cambodian sweatshop, and this is what you get:


 

Now, the question is... what can we do?  Or what can we NOT do?




"Who" are you wearing right now?

On sustainability... and why we should care

Sarah Jessica Parker wears ECO-friendly sweatshirt by Pharrell Williams article here

In bed the other night, winding down for sleep, I asked my husband, "Can you think of any industry where people are banding together in a big movement to bring about change in industry practices?" No response.  "Anything?" 

Yes, these are my thoughts before I go to sleep...

"Hmm.. he said.  Maybe big oil?"

Oil?  I thought?  And then, I thought about a high school friend of mine, who I coincidentally ran into just a week ago, (who is actually an expert in the fields of Human Rights and Corporate Responsibility) and how some of the thoughts she has to share might be applicable in the sustainable fashion movement.

A path to her website led me to a link that you will have to see to believe.  When you visit, look at the list of companies on the left of the screen, and think about how many of those brands you own. 

*Keep in mind that specific brands play different parts in this crisis, and clicking through is necessary to read which details pertain to each company.

If a purchase of those products is a "vote" for their role in the industry, for slavery, for poor treatment, for unsafe conditions, for human rights violations, how many votes have you cast?

So...

Take a deep breath, then click here.

Also note problems such as food insecurity and anemia for factory workers in the article posted here.

But...

there are some great companies, like Levi Strauss, who are really making a point of having a clear, positive corporate mission as it relates to how their products are produced.

Here's a relevant article addressing the current concerns, and what can happen if not addressed... And another one...

But the big questions is... what will need to happen to make change happen?  What might we start to do differently?

Bigger still...

What will happen if we do nothing?

Close to home

"Ma also gave me $2.99 to buy a paperback Webster's dictionary.  This cost us almost two hundred finished skirts, since we were paid 1.5 cents per skirt.  For years, I calculated whether or not something was expensive by how many skirts it cost.  In those days, the subway was 100 skirst just to get to the factory and back, a package of gum cost 7 skirts, a hot dog was 50 skirts, and a new toy could range from 300 to 2,000 skirts.  I even measured friendship in skirts.  I learned you had to buy Christmas and birthday presents for friends, which cost at least a few hundred skirts each.  It was a good thing I only had Annette as a friend."

- Kwok, Jean. Girl in Translation.

The above quote is an excerpt from a beautifully written work of fiction, which I highly recommend to you all.  The following quote is from the author herself:

We lost all our money in the move to the United States.  My family started working in a sweatshop in Chinatown.  My father took me there every day after school and we all emerged many hours later, soaked in sweat and covered in fabric dust.  Our apartment swarmed with insects and rats.  In the winter, we kept the oven door open day and night because there was no other heat in the apartment. 

-Jean Kwok

With all of my recent talk about foreign factory labor, unions, the importance of local suppliers, etc.  Here's the kicker: I read the about the author page on the web, after seeing her familiar face with a link on a high school friend's Facebook page. The high school the author went to?  Same as my own.  I didn't know her personally, although the classes were small,  (at least, I don't remember - my apologies if you see this somehow, Jean if that isn't true, but I certainly know your face!) since we were a year apart. 

The hard truth is this:  You have no idea what kind of hardship your neighbor may be facing. With enough food worldwide to fill everyone's bellies, 1 in 8 people is hungry.  This shocking statistic is amplified when visiting the Our Global Food exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City right now.  With our closets and drawers overflowing, and workers are sometimes risking even death to make even more clothing for those of us privileged enough to buy even more stuff, without even thinking twice. A family friend who works as a home health aid had a nearly impossible time trying to find an appropriate school for her autistic son, so she could simply earn a modest living.

The fact is, this is about far more than clothing.

What can we do?  Well, we don't need an official "movement", since everyone can take steps of his/her own.  Here's what my (literal) sister is doing. How about you?