Made in where?

Do you ever wonder where your clothes are made? Have you ever read the "Made in ..." tag on your clothes? Many of you, including myself will most likely respond with a no. I don't think many people even look at the tags of where their clothes are made when they are out shopping. The movie brings up many interesting points: some being globalization, history, power, and working conditions of sweat shops. What caught my attention the most and what I plan on focusing on in my blog is working conditions of factories outside of the United States. I don't feel that anybody in the United States reads where their clothes are made before they purchase them.

One might think that working conditions in the textile industry in America would be much better than in lower class countries. We have stricter regulations,better innovation and an all around higher standard of living. What was stated in the movie and a theme of the book that causes problems with working in textile in American is competition. It's all about the money. We could produce T-shirts here but why would we want to do that when we can produce the raw materials and then have them shipped over to countries where the products are made? This is cheaper on our part. I have mixed feelings about this. It is good on the part of the consumers in America because we eventually get T-shirts and other clothing at a cheaper price. On the other hand the places that we send our raw materials are typically poorer countries with harsh working conditions. Then again even with the harsh working conditions we are creating jobs. Unfortunately to make the textile industry even cheaper on the United States we are now importing from major agricultural countries, one more recognized importer being China. I say unfortunately because the textile industry in the United States is slowly coming to a demise. This all takes me back to the idea of recognizing where your clothing is made. I ask this because we can slowly make a difference. I think it's wrong that America's textile industry, with strict regulations and job opportunities is slowly closing to textile industries in China with working conditions that are unheard of in the US.

Working conditions in Chinese textile factories are harsh. Children as young as twelve years old are working as much as sixteen hours a day. Unfortunately in poorer areas of the country parents allow their children to go out and work because they need the money for the family. In an article from the China Labour Bulletin a reporter from Guangzhou's Southern Metropolis Newspaper went into a textile factory in China. That is where he saw the young twelve year old children working. The article states that, "When he asked where they slept they replied that the cramped 200-square meter workshop was it, and that at night they slept on or under their worktables." These type of working conditions are not uncommon. A reason why our costs of importing into America are so cheap is because factories, such as this one in China can produce so much for such a little cost. Every time your put on a T-shirt look at the tag. Made in China? Think about where clothes are produced. I sometimes think if it is possible for conditions like this to ever end. For children to go to school and for factories to have strict regulations. I wonder if it will ever change.

http://www.china-labour.org.hk/en/node/15889

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21516766/
(this is about India but it is interesting... anybody wear GAP clothes?)