Slavery existed in the southern States in order to maintain the lifestyles of large plantation owners. Abolitionists at that time felt that slavery was an evil system that led to the exploitation of labour and moral degradation of both slaves and masters. So eventually the States outlawed slavery; or did they?Our lifestyles in the first world nations are maintained by a similar system of exploitation and degradation. While we in Canada boast of such things as medicare for all, a good minimum wage and free schooling, we continue to ignore our responsibility to people in other nations who make our lifestyles possible. What if we demanded that every worker we benefit from gets the same rights as we do in Canada? We have, in essence, transported our slaves away from our plantations in our countries and extended our plantations to cover areas in India, Africa, China, Indonesia etc.

It seems as long as people are willing to live as wastefully as we do, we will not see the end of exploitation of workers. So much of our clothing, food, children’s toys, and household appliances come from factories paying wages and allowing work conditions we long outlawed for our citizens in Canada.

Where is the fairness in demanding good labour laws in our country while allowing ourselves to consume a market entrenched in exploitation? Some people claim they cannot afford to buy fairly traded, organic products. For some, this may be true. However, oftentimes it is just that we need to be convinced that this lifestyle choice is worth some sacrifices. It is, therefore, sometimes helpful to ask yourself this question when analyzing the affordability of products: if it were my child working in the sweatshop would I be able to find a way to support the alternative solution? There are many adjustments one can make to a budget to incorporate buying ethically.

Another hurdle we can encounter along the way to buying ethically is availability of products made with a clean conscience. It is a sad truth that our market has become so over-ridden with products made in terrifying conditions that it is often hard to find a good alternative. These are the steps I recommend to cutting back on your support of the filthy, rotten system.

Step 1: Increase your awareness of the issue and remind yourself on a daily basis what goes into supporting your present lifestyle.

Step 2: Reconsider whether you really need the product you are buying.

Step 3: Buy ethical alternatives where available. For food, choose organic, fair trade. For clothing, try shopping from www.rawganique.com or shop at thrift stores. For toys, try 10,000 Villages or thrift shops.

Step 4: Support a co-op initiative in another country. See www.peacecraft.org for some ideas.

After going through these steps you may still find yourself buying a sweatshop product, but it may be less than what you were once buying. Of course not everyone can live perfectly all the time, never impacting the world in a negative way. We cannot expect ourselves to turn into the perfect social activist overnight. Rather we must just take one step at a time, never losing sight of that final goal. And maybe one day we might actually abolish slavery throughout our world.

Action: Increase your awareness of sweatshop products in your house. Write down where all your toys, clothing and appliances were made. Too much work? What are you doing owning all that stuff?! Okay, choose just ten items and do the same.

Article by Sylvia Matter
Septemeber 2005