Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking. Bag by bag, the cards came piling in, a line of postal workers carrying the mail sacks two at a time, depositing the thousands of letters onto the desk. The penultimate scene from the film . Ahead of this year's Christmas shopping season, advocates for clothing workers hope a similar picture plays out in real life as proof the buying public is ready for a fair trade option for their closets. The Human Thread, a Catholic advocacy group for garment workers, launched a national postcard campaign last month that asks Macy's and Kohl's to add a fair trade clothing item to their department store racks and shelves. The request is intentionally vague, preferring to allow the stores to decide what department - - men, women, children - - to target, and what article of clothing to add. When we visit the auto dealer, we can buy a hybrid. When we visit Macy's, we want the option to buy clothing that is fair trade and sustainable. The same message appears on the card addressed to Kevin Mansell, Kohl's chairman, CEO and president. Rather than rebuke the companies - - two among many in the $2. U. S. Its goal is for cards to arrive at each company from all 5. Washington D. C., Puerto Rico and Guam. Those interested in joining the campaign can have postcards shipped to them or can download them at the Human Thread website, which has seen a surge in traffic since the campaign went live Sept.
Mike Crosby, founder of The Human Thread, told NCR the campaign has a threefold purpose: raise awareness among Catholics - - and all consumers - - of the connection between the clothing they wear daily and the exploited labor that produced it; create solidarity among them and the workers; and deliver action that improves their standard of living. We live and breathe that reality of exploited labor. The priest, a four- plus decades vet of corporate responsibility advocacy, said the postcards represent a concrete effort . Conference of Catholic Bishops Coalition of Catholic Organizations Against Human Trafficking, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, Franciscan Action Network, Society of St. Vincent de Paul and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. Some are already active in the mailing. One sister in Philadelphia ordered 1,0. Marianist Province of North America has pledged to spread word among its communities, colleges, parishes and retreat centers. LCWR plans to join the campaign more earnestly in mid- October.'Reality of exploited labor'The timing of the campaign - - beginning shortly after Labor Day and running through Black Friday - - was meant to connect the struggle for workers' rights in this country with today's consumer culture that often sees goods produced by people elsewhere in the world lacking their own rights. To support women mystery writers. The site contains information about events, grants, books in print, resources for members, libraries, and book clubs.Often, that means wages unable to support basic life needs. In Bangladesh, the world's second- largest apparel exporter employing more than 4 million people (8. Beyond pay, the fashion industry is among the leading industries targeted for human trafficking, accounting for 2. When the eight- story Rana Plaza garment factory collapsed in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on April 2. Francis offered prayers and condolences for the families who lost loved ones, but also seized the moment to decry the working conditions inside it and other similar factories. That is called slave labor. How many of our brothers and sisters in the world are in this situation at the hands of these economic, social and political attitudes! Typically, fashion decisions are made by cost and how they make us look, he said. At the same time, The Human Thread sought to leverage existing relationships and avoid stores typically serving customers at lower- income levels. Macy's, when asked about the postcard campaign, pointed to its Vendor & Supplier Code of Conduct, which since 1. The code prohibits forced labor, slavery, child labor and human trafficking by its vendors, and states employees should be paid at least the minimum wage required by law or the prevailing industry wage. Since 2. 01. 2, Macy's has ended 7. Neither Macy's nor Kohl's, which did not respond to comment requests for this story, stated whether they had begun receiving the postcards. Both U. S. But when conversations shift to wages, they end abruptly, he said, as it did in August when The Human Thread informed the Wisconsin- based company about the upcoming postcard campaign. Crosby said they were met with anger, with a rep questioning not just their rationale but also their faith. Created by Ron Cowen, Daniel Lipman. With Swoosie Kurtz, Patricia Kalember, Sela Ward, Elizabeth Hoffman. Alex, the oldest, is a wealthy. Cox said he prefers the stores be angry with them, rather than . As it stands, no fair trade apparel company exists that's capable of developing a large- scale line. Alta Gracia Apparel, based in the Dominican Republic, is one of the larger fair trade brands and is sold primarily through college campus bookstores, including numerous Catholic universities. But the mailing is only part of it, the pledge to buy - - and to likely pay more - - has to come with it. Because it will be costing more money. Local news for the city of Sisters, editorials, opinions, letters, 'Sheriff's Calls', events, classifieds, archives and subscription and advertising details. So too, but at a lower level, would raising awareness among consumers or expanding corporate dialogue about the moral dimension of shopping. Crosby has hope the campaign will bear fruit for fair trade apparel, partly due to successes ICCR has had as a member of broad coalitions that targeted changes in the tobacco industry and sought increased wages in Wal- Mart's stores, though not at assembly sites. For Cox, he believes that one store making a move to fair trade could trigger a chain reaction among competitors, similar to those in other markets, like the auto industry, where a rise in consumer consciousness has led to new product lines. To view original story, or explore other content from NCR: Click Here.
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